AEA Papers and Proceedings
ISSN 2574-0768 (Print) | ISSN 2574-0776 (Online)
Gatekeepers of Disparities: Variation in Prosecutors’ Effects on Racial Gaps in Incarceration
AEA Papers and Proceedings
(pp. 376–381)
Abstract
Prosecutors serve as gatekeepers between arrest and sentencing, giving them influence over how racial disparities evolve through the criminal justice system. Using the quasi-random assignment of cases within North Carolina prosecutor offices, we estimate the variation in prosecutors’ impacts on racial disparities in incarceration rates. We find substantial variation: A prosecutor one standard deviation below the mean reduces disparities by 1.3 percentage points—roughly 40% of the unconditional race gap. Black and Democratic prosecutors reduce disparities on average, but most of the variation in prosecutors' disparate impacts exists within race and politics, pointing to other important drivers of heterogeneity.Citation
Harrington, Emma, and Hannah Shaffer. 2026. "Gatekeepers of Disparities: Variation in Prosecutors’ Effects on Racial Gaps in Incarceration." AEA Papers and Proceedings 116: 376–381. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20261049Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- H76 State and Local Government: Other Expenditure Categories
- J15 Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- K42 Illegal Behavior and the Enforcement of Law