In the 1970s and 1980s the United States government initiated what we call the 'War on Drugs.' Soon after, state governments began to enact new legislation imposing mandatory minimum sentences for drug offenders, and eliminating judicial discretion in imposing sentences. It was not long,...

This paper examines the impact of jury racial composition on trial outcomes using a unique data set of felony trials in Florida between 2000 and 2010. We utilize a research design that exploits day-to-day variation in the composition of the <i>jury pool</i> to isolate quasi-random variation in the...

One of the most striking features of crime in America is its disproportionate concentration in disadvantaged, racially segregated communities, which has long raised concern that segregation itself may contribute to criminal behavior. Yet little is known about whether government efforts to reduce...