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Criminal Cases and Plea Bargaining

It also has to do with the overall cost of a court case. Average cost of the five non-death penalty notice cases was $55,606. .
             So, does the plea bargain deal leave room for the criminal to sleaze away or is it an effective way of serving justice? Let's look at the stats of this in America, more than 97% of federal convictions and 94% of state convictions result from guilty pleas. Recognizing that reality, the Supreme Court ruled 5 to 4 this week that defendants have a constitutional right to be informed by their lawyers about the possibility of a plea bargain and the implications of turning one down. The United States court system has turned from a trial system to a plea system. So is justice ever being served? In an 'ideal world", plea bargaining would not exist. Most defenders of plea bargaining believe that without it an already overburdened criminal justice system would grind to a halt. Plea bargaining is seen as a way to weaken deterrence. The very essence of deterrence is credibility. Deterrence is weakened as the criminal brags about his deal and spreads word throughout the community that the law has no "teeth." Also, plea bargaining tends to extort guilty pleas. A 1967 report issued by the President's commission on Law Enforcement put the issue squarely: "There are also real dangers that excessive rewards will be offered to induce pleas or that prosecutors will threaten to seek a harsh sentence if the defendant does not plead guilty. These practices place unacceptable burdens on the defendant who legitimately insists upon his right to trial." .
             Underlying many plea negotiations is the understanding - or threat - that if the defendant goes to trial and is convicted he will be dealt with more harshly than would be the case if he had pleaded guilty. An innocent defendant might be persuaded that the harsher sentence he must face if he is unable to prove his innocence at trial means that it is to his best interest to plead guilty despite his innocence.


Essays Related to Criminal Cases and Plea Bargaining

1. Types and Processes of Plea Bargaining

Plea bargains are a great asset to the criminal justice system in the battle against organized crime. ... Sentence bargain is the second type of plea bargain in the criminal justice system. ... Plea bargains allow the justice system to get through cases more quickly rather than going through a lengthy trial. ... Moreover, plea bargains may be used to further a case against other parties in the crime or more serious offenders. ... If judge rejects a plea deal, the case then goes on to a trial. ...

  • Word Count: 2444
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2. Plea Bargains

The fact that so many cases are being resolved through plea bargains shows how heavily the court system relies on plea bargains. ... If the majority of all cases are resolved by people pleading guilty in order to receive a plea bargain, then the majority of our country's criminals have not received full justice for the crime they have committed. ... Some people think there might actually be less crime in the United States if the government wasn't so easy on criminal cases. ... If the case does not go to trial, the prosecutor then will negotiate a plea bargain. ... There are man...

  • Word Count: 1900
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Plea Bargaining

Plea bargaining is all too common a process in the criminal justice system. ... Plea bargaining "provides criminals with excessive leniency" (Nasheri 25). ... Despite this criticism, plea bargaining remains as the main method of disposing of criminal cases (Guidorizzi). It is not be a good idea to completely ban plea bargains due to the horrendous backlog in cases that would result. ... In cases where no felony charges exist then bargains should be allowed....

  • Word Count: 880
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

4. Plea bargaining

Plea bargaining is a benefit to our criminal justice system. ... With plea bargaining a prosecutor could devote their time to cases that they had strong evidence that they believed, the suspect is innocent. ... Plea bargaining is a settlement of criminal cases, in an informal process of negotiations, between the prosecutor and the defense counsel. ... That leaves 10% of criminal cases that end up in a trial. (Plea Bargains: How Most criminal Cases End 20/3) Plea bargaining is prevalent for practical reasons. ...

  • Word Count: 1266
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

5. The Rules of Plea Bargaining

However, in reality most cases are solved or ended in a plea bargain. ... The courtroom workgroup contains the individuals and teams who work collectively to effectively prosecute a criminal court case. ... To be able to offer a plea bargain at any time in the trial process causes a lot of discrepancies within the criminal justice system. ... The Prosecutor incentives to enter a plea bargain involve, "being able to handle more cases, conviction rates soar, and most importantly, more criminals are more quickly off the streets" [Hes02]. ... Without plea bargains in the criminal justice...

  • Word Count: 3937
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  • Grade Level: High School

6. Plea

Black's defines plea bargaining as: The process whereby the accused and the prosecutor in a criminal case work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the case subject to court approval. ... A comprehensive definition defines plea bargaining as "the defendant's agreement to plead guilty to a criminal charge with the reasonable expectation of receiving some consideration from the state... "Not much is known about the day-to-day work of the courtroom in . . . 1800";[47] however, the absence of certain features in the system can be deduced from the adoption of those featur...

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7. Analysis of Criminal and Civil Cases

Criminal cases deal with acts that are offenses against society such as murder and robbery. In both criminal and civil court cases, the lawyers involved make money. ... In addition, in criminal cases, a plea bargain could be reached before the trial starts. ... In criminal cases, there are two classes of crimes. ... In a criminal case, the defendant is charged with a crime, for instance, murder, and can face criminal punishment. ...

  • Word Count: 886
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  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

8. Plea Bargins

I feel that plea bargains are justice avoided. ... In the article reviewed the statement is made that approximately ninety percent of the cases heard result in plea-bargains rather than going through a full trial. If ninety percent of these cases are accepted plea bargains, the system should be able to "push through" to the next case; therefor overcrowding of cases shouldn't exist. ... It is easier for the system to quickly resolve matters, and give persons a lesser criminal sentence and/or record by allowing them to accept a plea bargain, yet it doesn't serve the punishment that i...

  • Word Count: 340
  • Approx Pages: 1
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

9. America's Failing Criminal Justice

Plea-bargaining Marissa Alexander was offered a plea bargain during her trial but she turned it down. ... Plea-bargaining has raised questions throughout the years, such as who gains and who loses from plea-bargaining? "The impact of plea bargaining on the criminal justice system goes beyond the influence that negotiated settlements have on sentencing " (Feeley: 426). A defendant in a criminal case, plea-bargaining provides the opportunity for a not so harsh sentence on a lesser charge. ... Plea bargaining assures a conv...

  • Word Count: 2555
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Has Bibliography

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