Skip navigation.
Home | About Us | Contact Us
Rick Scott, Governor
Florida Department of Corrections, Secretary Michael D. Crews

Florida Department of Corrections
Michael D. Crews, Secretary

Florida's Criminal Punishment Code:
A Comparative Assessment (FY 2000-2001)
first | previous | 5 of 13 | next

Part II Offense to Sentence Date Lag Time Comparison

FACT: Scoresheets that have been received by the Department of Corrections for offenders sentenced under the Florida Criminal Punishment Code are not representative of the true impact of sentencing events under the Code.

FINDINGS:

  • There were 85,824 scoresheets submitted to the Department of Corrections with sentence dates in FY2000-2001 and offense dates on or after October 1, 1999. The number of scoresheets submitted to the Department of Corrections with sentence dates in FY1999-2000 and offense dates on or after October 1, 1998 was 91,660.

  • Lag Time - The average length of time that passes from the date an offender commits a crime to the date the offender is sentenced for that crime is 5.6 months. As defined by the word "average", half of the lag times that occur are less than 5.6 months and half are greater than 5.6 months (Table 1).

  • More serious and violent crimes typically have much longer lag time than the less serious property or drug crimes. A data file that is constrained by the date of offense must allow for enough time for the serious and violent crimes to be processed and convicted in order to represent a true distribution of sentencing events. The Florida Criminal Punishment Code went into effect for offenses committed on or after October 1, 1998. As of August 31, 2001, the Department of Corrections had received over 100,000 Code scoresheets. However, because of the long lag time for serious offenses, the information to date is skewed more heavily by the less serious offenses.

  • The average lag time for FY1999-2000 sentencing events is 5.6 months, identical to that of the scoresheets received with sentence dates in FY2000-2001 (Table 1). When the lag times are examined by offense severity level and type of primary offense, the average lag time for level 10 offenses (most serious) was 9.5 months for sentencing events during FY2000-2001. In FY1999-2000, the average lag time for level 10 offenses was 9.3 months. Also, for murder/manslaughter, the average lag time from offense to sentence is 10.2 months for sentencing dates in FY2000-2001, and 9.4 months in FY1999-2000 (Table 2).

  • In FY1999-2000, the more violent, serious offenses represented more than seventeen percent (17.8%) of the scoresheets, while for sentencing events in FY2000-2001, seventeen percent (17.0%) were the more violent, serious offenses (Table 3).

Table 1 Comparison of Average Time from Offense Date to Sentence Date by Offense Severity Level of Primary Offense, in Months

Offense Severity Level FY 99-00
Sentence Dates1		 FY 00-01
Sentence Dates2
1 5.4 5.3
2 5.8 5.8
3 4.9 4.9
4 5.3 5.4
5 5.8 5.8
6 6.1 6.2
7 6.9 7.0
8 7.7 8.0
9 8.6 8.7
10 9.3 9.5
Overall Average 5.6 5.6
1Offense dates on or after October 1, 1998.
2Offense dates on or after October 1, 1999.

Table 2 Comparison of Average "Lag" Time from Offense Date to Sentence Date by Primary Offense, in Months

Primary Offense FY 99-00 Sentence Dates1 FY 00-01 Sentence Dates2
Murder/Manslaughter 9.4 10.2
Sexual/Lewd Behavior 8.3 8.4
Robbery 6.9 6.6
Violent, Other 5.9 6.0
Burglary 5.8 5.9
Property Theft/Fraud/Damage 5.9 6.0
Drugs 5.1 5.1
Weapons 5.9 6.0
Other 5.2 5.2
Overall Average 5.6 5.6
1Offense dates on or after October 1, 1998.
2Offense dates on or after October 1, 1999.

Distribution Offense Group

Table 3 Distribution of Offense Sentence Dates FY 99-00 vs. Sentence Dates FY 00-01

Primary Offense FY 99-00 Sentence Dates1 FY 00-01 Sentence Dates2
Murder/Manslaughter 288 260
0.3% 0.3%
Sexual Offenses 1,297 1,179
1.4% 1.4%
Robbery 2,057 2,139
2.2% 2.5%
Violent Personal Offenses 11,988 11,664
13.1% 13.6%
Burglary 8,544 7,969
9.3% 9.3%
Theft/Forgery/Fraud 18,752 17,857
20.5% 20.8%
Drugs 35,446 32,173
38.7% 37.5%
Weapons 2,320 1,754
2.5% 2.0%
Other 10,968 10,829
12.0% 12.6%
Total 91,660 85,824
100.0% 100.0%
1 Offense dates on or after October 1, 1998.
2 Offense dates on or after October 1, 1999.

Table 4 Distribution of Offense

Primary Offense FY 99-00 Sentence Dates FY 00-01 Sentence Dates
Murder/Manslaughter 288 0.3% 260 0.3%
1st Degree Murder 61 0.1% 49 0.1%
2nd Degree Murder 103 0.1% 90 0.1%
3rd Degree Murder 8 0.0% 3 0.0%
Homicide, Other 3 0.0% 4 0.0%
Manslaughter 69 0.1% 64 0.1%
DUI Manslaughter 44 0.0% 50 0.1%
Sexual Offenses 1,297 1.4% 1,179 1.4%
Capital Sexual Battery 58 0.1% 61 0.1%
Life Sexual Battery 29 0.0% 28 0.0%
1st Degree Sexual Battery 57 0.1% 45 0.1%
2nd Degree Sexual Battery 164 0.2% 143 0.2%
Sexual Assault, Other 7 0.0% 3 0.0%
Lewd/Lascivious Behavior 982 1.1% 899 1.0%
Robbery 2,057 2.2% 2,139 2.5%
Robbery with Weapon 808 0.9% 693 0.8%
Robbery without Weapon 1,215 1.3% 1,389 1.6%
Home Invasion, Robbery 34 0.0% 57 0.1%
Violent Personal Offenses 11,988 13.1% 11,664 13.6%
Home Invasion, Other 1 0.0% 0 0.0%
Carjacking 111 0.1% 112 0.1%
Aggravated Assault 2,043 2.2% 1,854 2.2%
Aggravated Battery 1,639 1.8% 1,565 1.8%
Assault/Battery on L.E.O. 1,649 1.8% 1,760 2.1%
Assault/Battery, Other 547 0.6% 504 0.6%
Aggravated Stalking 267 0.3% 281 0.3%
Resisting Arrest with Violence 2,303 2.5% 2,312 2.7%
Kidnapping 443 0.5% 371 0.4%
Arson 187 0.2% 175 0.2%
Abuse of Children 1,080 1.2% 887 1.0%
Leaving Accident, Injury/Death 412 0.4% 476 0.6%
DUI, Injury 137 0.1% 130 0.2%
Violent, Other 1,169 1.3% 1,237 1.4%
Burglary 8,544 9.3% 7,969 9.3%
Burglary, Structure 4,907 5.4% 4,627 5.4%
Burglary, Dwelling 2,479 2.7% 2,314 2.7%
Burglary, Armed 245 0.3% 201 0.2%
Burglary with Assault 278 0.3% 258 0.3%
Burglary/Trespass, Other 635 0.7% 569 0.7%
Theft/Forgery/Fraud 18,752 20.5% 17,857 20.8%
Grand Theft, Other 6,866 7.5% 6,802 7.9%
Grand Theft, Automobile 3,047 3.3% 2,856 3.3%
Stolen Property 2,306 2.5% 2,026 2.4%
Forgery/Counterfeiting 2,850 3.1% 2,862 3.3%
Worthless Checks 621 0.7% 541 0.6%
Fraudulent Practices 1,767 1.9% 1,646 1.9%
Theft/Property Damage, Other 1,295 1.4% 1,124 1.3%
Drugs 35,446 38.7% 32,173 37.5%
Drugs, Manufacture/Sale/Purchase 12,746 13.9% 11,285 13.1%
Drugs, Trafficking 643 0.7% 576 0.7%
Drugs, Possession/Other 22,057 24.1% 20,312 23.7%
Weapons 2,320 2.5% 1,754 2.0%
Weapons, Discharging 403 0.4% 339 0.4%
Weapons, Possession 1,889 2.1% 1,404 1.6%
Weapons, Other 28 0.0% 11 0.0%
Other 10,968 12.0% 10,829 12.6%
Escape 1,947 2.1% 2,164 2.5%
DUI, No Injury 643 0.7% 509 0.6%
Traffic, Other 6,607 7.2% 6,371 7.4%
Racketeering 13 0.0% 20 0.0%
Pollution/Hazardous Materials 88 0.1% 80 0.1%
Other 1,670 1.8% 1,685 2.0%
Total 91,660 100.0% 85,824 100.0%
Florida's Criminal Punishment Code:
A Comparative Assessment (FY 2000-2001)
first | previous | 5 of 13 | next