Contempt of Court in Monroe County — Public Defender vs Private Attorney

In Monroe County, we compared 34 Contempt of Court cases with public defenders against 37 cases with private attorneys (2023-2025). Private attorneys achieved a 13.5 percentage point higher dismissal rate.

0.0%
PD Dismissal Rate
34 cases
13.5%
Private Attorney Dismissal Rate
37 cases
+13.5 pts
Dismissal Rate Difference
The data shows private attorneys achieve a 13.5 percentage point higher dismissal rate for Contempt of Court in Monroe County. Get matched with a local defense attorney — free, no obligation.
Metric Public Defender Private Attorney
Total Cases 34 37
Dismissal Rate 0.0% 13.5%
Conviction Rate 100.0% 83.8%
Guilty Rate 91.2% 75.7%
Adjudication Withheld 8.8% 8.1%
Diversion Rate 0.0% 2.7%
Avg Sentence 3.9 months 4.8 months
Avg Fine $0.00 $0.00
Avg Probation 1 year 1 year

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 Contempt of Court is 6.6% with public defenders and 6.3% with private attorneys (-0.3 point difference). Monroe County's 13.5 point difference is above the statewide average.

Location PD Dismissal Private Dismissal Difference
Monroe County 0.0% 13.5% +13.5 pts
Florida (Statewide) 6.6% 6.3% -0.3 pts
Charge PD Cases PD Dismissal Private Cases Private Dismissal
Traffic Offense 482 0.4% 2,653 0.5%
Other 402 1.0% 1,851 2.4%
Drug Possession 506 2.4% 1,077 0.7%
Trespassing 359 0.3% 460 0.2%
Resisting Officer 252 0.4% 519 0.8%
DUI 185 2.2% 567 2.5%
Larceny / Theft 252 0.8% 428 0.9%
Battery 174 0.0% 452 1.1%

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In Monroe County, private attorney clients have a 13.5% dismissal rate for Contempt of Court compared to 0.0% for public defender clients. This is a 13.5 percentage point difference based on 71 cases. However, correlation is not causation — private attorney clients may have different case characteristics.
The conviction rate for Contempt of Court in Monroe County is 100.0% with a public defender and 83.8% with a private attorney. Conviction includes both guilty findings and adjudication withheld.
Statewide, the dismissal rate is 6.6% for public defenders and 6.3% for private attorneys. Monroe County's difference of 13.5 points compares to a statewide difference of -0.3 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 · 71 cases analyzed · Monroe County · 2023-2025 · Data last updated March 2026