Last time, we reviewed reversal rates in criminal cases from the Divisions of Los Angeles’ Second District.  Today, we’re looking at the rest of the state – San Francisco’s First District, Divisions One through Five, the Third District, District Four, Divisions One, Two and Three, and the Fifth and Sixth Districts.

Division 2 of the First District has had the hardest time over the entire period, with a reversal rate of 72.41%.  Division 3 of the Fourth District is close behind at 69.77%.  The Sixth District has a reversal rate of 61.7%.  Division 5 of the First had a reversal rate of 58.06%, and Division 1 of the Fourth was at 57.8%.  Division 2 of the Fourth District had a reversal rate of 55.13%.  The Fifth District was at 54.22%.  The Third District fared best, with a reversal rate of 53%.

Division 1 of the Fourth District had the most criminal cases on the Court’s docket, 109.  The Third District was next with 100 cases.  The Sixth District had 94 cases, Division 3 of the Fourth had 86 and the Fifth District had 83.  Division Two of the Fourth District had 78 cases.  Collectively, the First District had 134 cases split among its five Divisions – 31 in Division 5, 29 each in Divisions 2 and 4, 27 cases in Division 3 and 18 in Division 1.

Between 1990 and 1999, 85.71% of Division 3 of the Fourth District’s criminal cases were reversed.  Division 2 of the First District was at 83.33%.  Division 5 of the First District had a 70% reversal rate.  The Sixth District had a reversal rate of 61.76% and the Third District and Division 1 of the Fourth were at 60%.  The Fifth District had a reversal rate for the decade of 57.69%.  Division 3 of the First was at 53.85%, and the reversal rate for Division 2 of the Fourth District was an even 50%.  The reversal rate for Division 4 of the First District was 40%.  Division 1 of the First District fared best, with a reversal rate of only 28.57%.

The highest reversal rates between 2000 and 2009 in this group of courts were Division 2 of the First District (66.67%) and Division 3 of the Fourth (64.52%).  The Fifth District had a reversal rate of 55.56%.  The reversal rate in the Third District was 55.32%.  The reversal rate in the Sixth District was 54.55%.

Division 1 of the Fourth District had a reversal rate for the period of 48.65%.  Division 4 of the First District was 46.67%.  Division 5 of the First District was at 45.45%.  Division 2 of the Fourth District had a reversal rate of 40.91%.  Divisions 1 and 3 of the First District had a superb decade, with a 16.67% reversal rate in Division 1 and only 12.5% in Division 3.

Division 2 of the First District posted the worst reversal rate from 2010 to 2020 – 72.73%.  The Sixth District was 70.37%.  The reversal rate for both Division Three of the First District and Division Two of the Fourth was two-thirds.  The rate for Division 1 of the Fourth was 65.96%.  Sixty percent of Division 5 of the First District’s criminal cases were reversed.

The reversal rate for Division 3 of the Fourth District was 59.26%.  The Fifth and Third Districts were in a photo finish for the period – the Fifth District reversal rate was 47.62% and the Third was 47.37%.  The reversal rate for Division 4 of the First District was one-third.  Finally, Division 1 of the First District had a reversal rate of only 20%.

Join us back here next week as we continue our study of the Court’s reversal rates.

Image courtesy of Pixabay by Goodfreephotos_com (no changes).