Forgery in Okeechobee County, Florida

In Okeechobee County, forgery cases result in conviction at notably high rates. Sixty-two percent of defendants are found guilty, while 38 percent receive adjudication withheld—a combined outcome rate of 100 percent. This stands in sharp contrast to statewide patterns, where dismissals occur in 2 percent of forgery cases and adjudication is withheld in only 22 percent. Okeechobee County has pursued no dismissals and employed no diversion programs in its 34 forgery cases, suggesting the local State Attorney treats this charge more as a matter for conviction than as one amenable to pretrial resolution or program completion.

Confinement follows conviction in roughly half of cases: 29 percent of defendants receive prison time averaging 774 days, while 18 percent serve jail sentences. Probation is lengthy, averaging over 1,000 days. Fines average $1,583. Nearly 30 percent of defendants in these cases were represented by public defender, indicating financial constraints among this defendant population. The median sentence of 548 days sits well below the average, suggesting some cases result in significantly longer terms that pull the average upward.