The Florida Prosecution Report: What Happens Before Court
Updated September 2026 · 2023-2025 data
Most public court data starts at the courtroom door. This report covers the step before it: the State Attorney's decision to prosecute or not. Across 2,113,413 charge decisions by Florida prosecutors (2023-2025), 30.0% of charges were never prosecuted — declined before filing, dropped after filing, or administratively dismissed.
Declination Rates by Charge, Statewide
For each charge category: how often prosecutors filed the charge, and how often it was never prosecuted. A dropped charge often reflects a plea agreement on a different charge in the same case — it does not always mean the case went away.
Exhibit · Declination rates by charge — Florida statewide (2023-2025)
| Charge | Decisions | Filed | Declined to File | Dropped After Filing | Never Prosecuted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kidnapping | 6,669 | 42.6% | 23.2% | 28.5% | 57.1% |
| Battery | 189,546 | 43.5% | 16.9% | 30.5% | 53.8% |
| Drug Manufacturing | 493 | 45.6% | 15.2% | 27.4% | 53.5% |
| Assault | 31,723 | 51.1% | 18.3% | 22.9% | 47.7% |
| Perjury | 6,870 | 54.6% | 26.8% | 16.3% | 43.8% |
| Robbery | 13,093 | 56.6% | 27.2% | 11.2% | 43.3% |
| Child Abuse / Neglect | 13,611 | 53.6% | 15.2% | 26.9% | 42.9% |
| Vehicle Theft | 13,553 | 57.3% | 19.2% | 12.3% | 42.2% |
| Stalking | 4,812 | 56.5% | 12.4% | 24.6% | 41.8% |
| Contempt of Court | 12,633 | 60.6% | 13.3% | 19.0% | 38.4% |
| Domestic Violence | 690 | 58.7% | 13.9% | 21.6% | 38.0% |
| Probation Violation | 22,260 | 61.6% | 3.8% | 33.5% | 37.5% |
| Stolen Property | 8,687 | 62.1% | 16.1% | 16.5% | 37.3% |
| Drug Possession | 293,972 | 61.7% | 14.1% | 19.4% | 36.8% |
| Drug Sale | 17,515 | 63.4% | 19.1% | 14.4% | 35.8% |
| Drug Trafficking | 14,171 | 65.0% | 12.9% | 20.1% | 35.0% |
| Embezzlement | 561 | 62.9% | 30.5% | 4.3% | 34.9% |
| Weapons Offense | 36,225 | 64.3% | 12.6% | 18.5% | 34.5% |
| Disorderly Conduct | 15,705 | 63.0% | 6.5% | 24.8% | 34.1% |
| Fraud | 62,882 | 64.5% | 15.3% | 13.9% | 33.7% |
| Criminal Mischief | 33,419 | 65.9% | 11.7% | 16.5% | 31.9% |
| Intimidation / Threats | 6,908 | 67.5% | 12.7% | 16.1% | 31.7% |
| Burglary | 46,268 | 68.3% | 13.5% | 12.8% | 31.1% |
| Arson | 903 | 69.2% | 12.7% | 12.8% | 30.6% |
| Escape / Failure to Appear | 1,204 | 71.0% | 14.5% | 12.7% | 29.0% |
| Homicide | 4,969 | 72.2% | 17.2% | 10.0% | 27.7% |
| Resisting Officer | 108,055 | 71.9% | 6.7% | 16.8% | 26.5% |
| Sex Offense | 49,544 | 73.6% | 7.5% | 16.3% | 26.3% |
| Forgery | 11,748 | 67.1% | 9.8% | 11.4% | 24.9% |
| Larceny / Theft | 162,706 | 73.6% | 7.4% | 13.8% | 23.7% |
| Bribery | 298 | 77.9% | 11.7% | 9.7% | 22.1% |
| Trespassing | 59,471 | 80.7% | 3.2% | 12.1% | 17.8% |
| DUI | 86,514 | 84.5% | 0.5% | 13.7% | 15.3% |
| Hit and Run | 23,443 | 83.0% | 1.7% | 9.5% | 13.9% |
| Traffic Offense | 452,463 | 88.8% | 0.6% | 8.8% | 10.3% |
Source: FDLE Criminal Justice Data Transparency · State Attorney case data · 2,113,413 decisions — FloridaCourtFile.com
The County You're Charged In Matters
Florida has 20 elected State Attorneys, each setting independent charging policy for their circuit. For the same charge category, the share of charges never prosecuted can differ by 50 to 80 percentage points between counties. Counties below are limited to those passing our data coverage gate with at least 200 decisions for the charge.
Battery — a 82.6-point spread across 43 counties
| County | Decisions | Never Prosecuted |
|---|---|---|
| Osceola (highest 1) | 801 | 90.3% |
| Orange (highest 2) | 3,520 | 89.1% |
| Lee (highest 3) | 10,473 | 75.5% |
| Hendry (highest 4) | 820 | 70.1% |
| Escambia (highest 5) | 4,927 | 68.2% |
| Holmes (lowest 1) | 235 | 7.7% |
| Palm Beach (lowest 2) | 4,817 | 12.3% |
| Manatee (lowest 3) | 1,977 | 13.6% |
| Sarasota (lowest 4) | 2,014 | 17.0% |
| Alachua (lowest 5) | 1,703 | 17.1% |
Exhibit · Battery declination spread — chart and county map
Hatched counties do not pass the coverage gate (52 of 67 counties qualify; county cells additionally need 200+ battery decisions — see methodology). Hover or tap a county for its rate.
Source: FDLE Criminal Justice Data Transparency · State Attorney case data — FloridaCourtFile.com
Drug Possession — a 79.3-point spread across 52 counties
| County | Decisions | Never Prosecuted |
|---|---|---|
| Osceola (highest 1) | 708 | 82.3% |
| Miami-Dade (highest 2) | 37,465 | 75.3% |
| Orange (highest 3) | 2,848 | 74.2% |
| Hillsborough (highest 4) | 42,821 | 60.4% |
| Collier (highest 5) | 6,961 | 45.8% |
| Manatee (lowest 1) | 3,656 | 3.0% |
| Sarasota (lowest 2) | 5,461 | 3.1% |
| Desoto (lowest 3) | 1,387 | 3.3% |
| Washington (lowest 4) | 475 | 4.4% |
| Highlands (lowest 5) | 1,834 | 5.7% |
DUI — a 48.6-point spread across 33 counties
| County | Decisions | Never Prosecuted |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte (highest 1) | 1,703 | 50.0% |
| Lee (highest 2) | 7,900 | 45.7% |
| Hendry (highest 3) | 388 | 41.8% |
| Collier (highest 4) | 3,030 | 41.5% |
| Palm Beach (highest 5) | 4,289 | 31.7% |
| Hillsborough (lowest 1) | 13,588 | 1.4% |
| Miami-Dade (lowest 2) | 5,594 | 1.9% |
| Manatee (lowest 3) | 3,275 | 2.2% |
| Sarasota (lowest 4) | 2,388 | 3.3% |
| St. Lucie (lowest 5) | 1,705 | 3.9% |
Larceny / Theft — a 58.5-point spread across 41 counties
| County | Decisions | Never Prosecuted |
|---|---|---|
| Osceola (highest 1) | 965 | 61.5% |
| Orange (highest 2) | 2,967 | 54.2% |
| Charlotte (highest 3) | 1,791 | 44.5% |
| Escambia (highest 4) | 5,620 | 38.5% |
| Hendry (highest 5) | 600 | 36.7% |
| Manatee (lowest 1) | 1,823 | 3.0% |
| Sarasota (lowest 2) | 2,073 | 4.6% |
| Clay (lowest 3) | 980 | 5.3% |
| Polk (lowest 4) | 6,712 | 6.5% |
| Desoto (lowest 5) | 376 | 7.4% |
Assault — a 73.0-point spread across 25 counties
| County | Decisions | Never Prosecuted |
|---|---|---|
| Orange (highest 1) | 744 | 82.3% |
| Hendry (highest 2) | 221 | 76.9% |
| Escambia (highest 3) | 885 | 67.8% |
| Pinellas (highest 4) | 1,690 | 66.9% |
| Lee (highest 5) | 1,241 | 64.9% |
| Brevard (lowest 1) | 624 | 9.3% |
| Alachua (lowest 2) | 368 | 11.7% |
| Leon (lowest 3) | 978 | 12.1% |
| Sarasota (lowest 4) | 250 | 14.0% |
| Manatee (lowest 5) | 353 | 14.2% |
Facing Charges in Florida?
These numbers describe what happens in the aggregate — they don't predict your case. A defense attorney who knows your county's practices can tell you where your charge actually stands. Free, confidential, no obligation.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage of criminal charges in Florida are never prosecuted?
Across 2,113,413 State Attorney charge decisions in Florida (2023-2025), 30.0% of charges were never prosecuted — the prosecutor declined to file, dropped the charge after filing, or the charge was administratively dismissed. The rate varies widely by charge type and county.
Which Florida charges are declined most often?
Among the charges in this report, Kidnapping has the highest statewide never-prosecuted rate at 57.1%. Charges that depend on victim cooperation tend to be declined more often; charges with strong physical evidence, like DUI, are declined far less often.
Does the county where you are charged affect whether the charge is prosecuted?
Yes, substantially. For the same charge category, never-prosecuted rates can differ by 50 to 80 percentage points between Florida counties. Each of Florida's 20 State Attorneys sets independent charging policy, and local practices on evidence, diversion, and victim cooperation differ.
Cite This Report
FloridaCourtFile, The Florida Prosecution Report: What Happens Before Court (2023-2025). Based on 2,113,413 State Attorney charge decisions from FDLE Criminal Justice Data Transparency records. https://www.floridacourtfile.com/research/florida-prosecution-report
This page recalculates from source data on every monthly refresh. Journalists and researchers: the underlying per-county tables are available on each charge page, and our full methodology is below. Questions about the data: see about.
How was this report calculated? (Methodology)
The Florida Prosecution Report is FloridaCourtFile's analysis of 2,113,413 State Attorney charge decisions (2023-2025) from FDLE Criminal Justice Data Transparency records; it measures how often a filed charge is never prosecuted, by charge type and county, and recalculates from source data on every monthly refresh.
Source: Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Criminal Justice Data Transparency — State Attorney case data, decisions dated 2023-2025. Rates are per charge, not per defendant. "Never prosecuted" = declined to file (no action) + dropped after filing (nolle prosequi) + administratively dismissed. Pre-trial diversion is counted separately and is not included in "never prosecuted." Transfers between courts are excluded.
Coverage gate: SAO feed participation varies by circuit. A county's numbers appear only when the county reported at least 1,000 decisions and its SAO volume is at least 25% of its clerk-case volume (52 of 67 counties qualify). County rankings additionally require 200+ decisions for the charge. Excluded counties: Columbia, Dixie, Flagler, Glades, Hamilton, Lafayette, Liberty, Madison, Pasco, Putnam, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union, Volusia.
Honest caveats: a dropped charge frequently reflects a plea agreement on another charge in the same case. Extreme county rates can reflect local recording practices as well as charging policy — compare a county's rate against its neighbors before drawing conclusions about any single office. This report describes aggregates; it does not predict any individual case.
Court outcome data elsewhere on this site is a separate dataset covering cases that reached disposition. Data last updated: September 2026