Exhibit 1. Failure to Appear (FTA) Rate by Reminder Type and Race/Ethnicity
From the article "NIJ’s Courts Research: Examining Alternatives to Incarceration for Veterans and Other Policy Innovation," November 1, 2021.
Persons charged with misdemeanors were randomly assigned to four notice conditions prior to their court date: (1) no reminder (the control condition), (2) a simple court reminder (reminder only), (3) a more substantive reminder that made them aware of possible sanctions should they fail to appear (reminder sanctions), and (4) a notification that mentioned sanctions but also highlighted positive consequences in the form of the procedural justice elements of voice, neutrality, respect, and public interest (reminder combined).
This exhibit shows the failure to appear rate by reminder type and race/ethnicity.
| Reminder Type | Failure to Appear Rate | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whites | Blacks | Hispanics | Total | |
| Control | 11.7% | 18.7% | 10.5% | 12.4% |
| Reminder Only | 9.6% | 18.8% | 11.8% | 11.0% |
| Reminder Sanctions | 8.0% | 13.5% | 4.7% | 8.1% |
| Reminder Combined | 8.8% | 13.6% | 10.1% | 9.5% |
| Total | 9.5% | 16.4% | 9.4% | 10.3% |
Note: n=7,865
Source: Brian H. Bornstein, Alan J. Tomkins, and Elizabeth M. Neeley, “Reducing Courts’ Failure to Appear Rate: A Procedural Justice Approach,” Final report to the National Institute of Justice, award number 2008-IJ-CX-0022, May 2011, NCJ 234370, https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/234370.pdf.