Battery in Leon County — Public Defender vs Private Attorney

In Leon County, we compared 1,345 Battery cases with public defenders against 497 cases with private attorneys (2023-2025). Public defenders achieved a 3.0 percentage point higher dismissal rate.

5.2%
PD Dismissal Rate
1,345 cases
2.2%
Private Attorney Dismissal Rate
497 cases
-3.0 pts
Dismissal Rate Difference
Facing Battery charges in Leon County?

Full Comparison: Public Defender vs Private Attorney

Metric Public Defender Private Attorney Self-Represented
Total Cases 1,345 497 38
Dismissal Rate 5.2% 2.2% 21.1%
Conviction Rate 58.7% 56.5% 18.4%
Guilty Rate 41.3% 36.4% 7.9%
Adjudication Withheld 17.4% 20.1% 10.5%
Diversion Rate 18.5% 35.2% 47.4%
Avg Sentence 8.5 months 1 year, 2 months 19 days
Avg Fine $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Avg Probation 1 year, 7 months 1 year, 11 months 8.1 months

Important context: Correlation is not causation. Private attorney clients may differ from public defender clients in income, prior criminal history, charge severity, and willingness to go to trial. These factors independently affect outcomes. This data is informational and does not constitute legal advice.

Statewide Comparison

Statewide, the dismissal rate for Battery is 2.7% with public defenders and 1.9% with private attorneys (-0.8 point difference). Leon County's -3.0 point difference is below the statewide average.

Location PD Dismissal Private Dismissal Difference
Leon County 5.2% 2.2% -3.0 pts
Florida (Statewide) 2.7% 1.9% -0.8 pts

Other Charges in Leon County

Charge PD Cases PD Dismissal Private Cases Private Dismissal
Drug Possession 2,006 1.3% 943 0.5%
Traffic Offense 1,864 0.9% 905 0.3%
Larceny / Theft 1,829 2.1% 466 0.0%
Trespassing 1,458 2.4% 125 1.6%
Resisting Officer 1,074 3.6% 288 3.1%
Other 679 3.1% 425 2.6%
Fraud 526 4.2% 229 2.2%
Weapons Offense 434 0.7% 236 0.4%

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Frequently Asked Questions

In Leon County, private attorney clients have a 2.2% dismissal rate for Battery compared to 5.2% for public defender clients. This is a -3.0 percentage point difference based on 1,842 cases. However, correlation is not causation — private attorney clients may have different case characteristics.
The conviction rate for Battery in Leon County is 58.7% with a public defender and 56.5% with a private attorney. Conviction includes both guilty findings and adjudication withheld.
Statewide, the dismissal rate is 2.7% for public defenders and 1.9% for private attorneys. Leon County's difference of -3.0 points compares to a statewide difference of -0.8 points.

Conviction includes guilty pleas and adjudication withheld. Data covers 2023–2025 FDLE public court records. Last updated: March 2026

Important: Differences in outcomes between public defenders and private attorneys may reflect differences in case complexity, defendant resources, charge severity, and other factors — not solely attorney quality. These statistics do not predict individual case outcomes.

Source: FDLE Criminal Justice Data Transparency · 1,842 cases analyzed · Leon County · 2023-2025 · Data last updated March 2026