Data were collected on a total of 399 cases on which presentence recommendations were requested by the criminal court of a large southern city. Analysis revealed that some legal statuses have a moderate degree of influence with respect to determining presentence recommendation and disposition. It was also found that judges follow very closely the recommendations in their decisions; the implications of this association are discussed. Very little influence of offender traits on probability of probation success could be detected, however. The paper presents theoretical implications and argues that the inconsistency between offender trait influences on decisions and the prediction of probation success suggests organizational dynamics as the important elements determining patterns of decisionmaking in the justice system. Study data, footnotes, and about 30 references are included. (Author abstract modified)