Clash of norms judicial leniency on defendant birthdays

Résumé

We document judicial leniency on defendant birthdays across 4.8 million decisions. Our results are consistent with reference-dependent social preferences. First, French sentences are 1% fewer and around 5% shorter. Second, U.S. federal judges also round down sentences except when rounding up makes available sentencing reductions for good behavior. No leniency appears on the days before or after a defendant's birthday.

Remplace

Daniel L. Chen et Arnaud Philippe, « Clash of norms: Judicial leniency on defendant birthdays », TSE Working Paper, n° 18-934, juillet 2018.

Référence

Daniel L. Chen et Arnaud Philippe, « Clash of norms judicial leniency on defendant birthdays », Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, vol. 211, juillet 2023, p. 324–344.