Temporal Frictions and Judicial Outcomes: Analyzing the Impact of Time Delays on Criminal Sentencing in Cook County (2020-2024)

This study examines how time delays between criminal offenses and arrests are associated with sentencing outcomes in Cook County, Illinois, during the COVID-19 era. Using administrative court records from 2020 to 2024, the analysis focuses on cases in which arrests did not occur immediately, allowing for systematic variation in procedural delay. The study asks whether longer delays are linked to more severe punishments and whether these associations differ across offense types and institutional contexts during periods of court disruption. The findings indicate that longer delays are consistently associated with harsher sentencing outcomes, even after accounting for demographic characteristics, case complexity, offense category, and pandemic-related disruptions. These associations are particularly pronounced in violent and sexual exploitation cases. While the analysis does not establish causal effects, the consistency of results across multiple empirical approaches suggests that procedural timing is a meaningful feature of judicial decision-making rather than a neutral administrative artifact. By documenting how institutional delays correlate with punishment severity, this study contributes to empirical research on judicial discretion, court efficiency, and inequality in the administration of justice, highlighting the importance of procedural fairness alongside formal legal criteria.