Battery in Nassau County — Public Defender vs Private Attorney

In Nassau County, we compared 194 Battery cases with public defenders against 38 cases with private attorneys (2023-2025). Public defenders achieved a 0.5 percentage point higher dismissal rate.

0.5%
PD Dismissal Rate
194 cases
0.0%
Private Attorney Dismissal Rate
38 cases
-0.5 pts
Dismissal Rate Difference
Facing Battery charges in Nassau County?
Metric Public Defender Private Attorney Self-Represented
Total Cases 194 38 5
Dismissal Rate 0.5% 0.0% 0.0%
Conviction Rate 96.4% 94.7% 100.0%
Guilty Rate 76.3% 52.6% 80.0%
Adjudication Withheld 20.1% 42.1% 20.0%
Diversion Rate 0.0% 0.0% 0.0%
Avg Sentence 1 year, 5 months 1 year, 12 months 1.0 months
Avg Fine $217.12 $717.25 $0.00
Avg Probation 1 year, 3 months 1 year, 3 months 9.1 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, the dismissal rate for Battery is 2.7% with public defenders and 1.9% with private attorneys (-0.8 point difference). Nassau County's -0.5 point difference is above the statewide average.

Location PD Dismissal Private Dismissal Difference
Nassau County 0.5% 0.0% -0.5 pts
Florida (Statewide) 2.7% 1.9% -0.8 pts
Charge PD Cases PD Dismissal Private Cases Private Dismissal
Traffic Offense 423 1.2% 508 0.0%
Drug Possession 588 0.0% 72 0.0%
DUI 222 0.0% 123 0.0%
Larceny / Theft 223 0.0% 26 0.0%
Other 142 0.0% 40 5.0%
Resisting Officer 87 0.0% 29 0.0%
Disorderly Conduct 91 0.0% 21 0.0%
Hit and Run 35 0.0% 18 0.0%

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In Nassau County, private attorney clients have a 0.0% dismissal rate for Battery compared to 0.5% for public defender clients. This is a -0.5 percentage point difference based on 232 cases. However, correlation is not causation — private attorney clients may have different case characteristics.
The conviction rate for Battery in Nassau County is 96.4% with a public defender and 94.7% 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. Nassau County's difference of -0.5 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 · 232 cases analyzed · Nassau County · 2023-2025 · Data last updated March 2026