Contempt of Court in Alachua County, Florida

Contempt of Court charges in Alachua County result in guilty verdicts at a notably high rate of 92.2 percent, compared to a statewide withheld adjudication rate of 10.2 percent that appears rarely used locally at just 3.1 percent. The county has recorded zero dismissals and zero diversions in 64 cases, departing sharply from the statewide dismissal average of 5.9 percent. This pattern suggests the State Attorney's office in this circuit pursues contempt cases aggressively and judges impose formal guilt findings rather than withholding adjudication, treating this charge with severity.

Sentencing reflects that approach: defendants average 130 days confinement with a median of 122 days, paired with probation averaging nearly 490 days. Nearly two-thirds of defendants (65.6 percent) received jail time. Public defenders represented 40.6 percent of defendants while only 3.1 percent retained private counsel, indicating most contempt defendants faced resource constraints during prosecution. Fines averaged less than $19, making confinement and probation the primary sanctions in Alachua County's contempt outcomes.