Stolen Property in Broward County, Florida

Stolen property cases in Broward County resolve very differently than across Florida. Nearly 70 percent of defendants are found guilty, while almost 30 percent receive adjudication withheld—a Florida outcome that avoids a formal conviction on the record. Together, these outcomes account for 98.6 percent of all cases. Broward's dismissal rate sits at 0.4 percent, substantially below the statewide average of 2.2 percent. The State Attorney in Broward's judicial circuit appears to pursue these cases aggressively, with convictions and withheld findings dominating outcomes while few cases are dismissed before trial or result in acquittal. The statewide withheld rate of 13.6 percent suggests Broward judges use this tool much more often than their counterparts elsewhere.

Defendants convicted or adjudicated in Broward face real confinement exposure. About one-third receive prison sentences and one-fifth receive jail time. The median sentence of 366 days reflects lighter sentences for some, but the average of 699.5 days shows heavier penalties pull the data upward. Probation is standard—averaging nearly 1,329 days—extending supervision well beyond incarceration. No defendants in this dataset accessed diversion programs, unlike the statewide average of 3.8 percent, meaning Broward offers no alternative path to avoiding conviction for stolen property charges.