Life or Death

2059 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The pros and cons of plea bargaining

Is plea bargaining unfair to the victim?

In every state in the United States, courts resolve overcrowding and other issues by offering plea deals which could be unfair to the victims of their crimes. Not only do the victims have to deal with the loss of their loved one or the crime committed against them, But also have to watch the criminal who committed the crime get a much lesser sentence then he deserves simply because he made it easier for the courts to convict him. It is hard to imagine the way it feels to lose someone very close to one’s heart, let alone having that person’s killer all but get away with what he did.

Plea bargaining was first created by the court case Brady v. Maryland in 1970 and roughly 90% of cases have been settled by plea deals since. The reason the courts agree with plea bargaining is because without them the courts would be tied up for decades with trials which could literally bankrupt the county very easily. They must be approved by the court which varies from state to state. Many believe plea bargaining allows for too much leniency to the criminal and does little to nothing to deter crime. Most of the economic analysis for bargaining has been used on single defendant cases, however there has been some cases where multiple defendants have utilized plea bargaining. One would turn dime on the others as part of the plea deal which would earn him or her lesser to no sentence.

Eldridge 2

Plea bargaining is where the courts conclude a trial before it starts by giving the criminal the choice of lessening the charges or amount of time he will have to serve in prison by agreeing to plead guilty to the charges he is up against. There are two types of plea bargaining; Charge bargain which is a deal made be...

... middle of paper ...

...l Law Center - Criminal Law. 11 Feb. 2011. Web. 15 Mar. 2011. .

The Associated Press. “Defendant Takes Plea in Javon Walker Robbery Case”. Newsnow.com.

The Associated Press. 9 April. 2010. Web, ! Mar. 2011. < http://www.8newsnow.com/story/12286451/defendant-takes-plea-in-javon-walker-robbery-case?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:%20lasvegasnow/homepage%20(LasVegasNow%20-%20Homepage)&redirected=true#>

Thompson, Steve. “What is a plea bargain and how do plea bargains work?” Associated content.

Yahoo, 17 Sept. 2006, Web, 22 Feb. 2011

Show More
Related

  • R V. Rogerson And Mcnamara Case Analysis

    611 Words  | 2 Pages

    Plea bargaining precludes justice from being achieved, where the consent to less severe sentences are given in favour of time and money. The case of R v Rogerson and McNamara, demonstrates the advantages of hiring highly trained legal personnel, which inevitably contributed to their lesser sentence. Thus, making it more difficult for offenders to be convicted.

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Plea Bargaining

    645 Words  | 2 Pages

    Criticism of plea bargaining mainly stems from two aspects. First, on the defendant’s aspect, a plea bargain can coerce

    Read More

  • Pros Of Plea Bargaining

    1079 Words  | 3 Pages

    Plea bargaining is an agreement between the Crown and the defendant in a criminal case. The Crown gives the accused an opportunity to plead guilty to a lesser charge for a lighter sentence or; to the same charge with a lighter sentence than the maximum sentence the Crown would have sought in a trial setting. There are numerous reasons why an accused would accept a plea bargain and why the Crown would offer one. One of the

    Read More

  • What Are The Advantages And Disadvantages Of Plea Bargaining Pros And Cons

    1083 Words  | 3 Pages

    Plea bargaining saves the court a lot of time by a case not going to trial. If the case doesn’t go to trial it also saves the criminal justice system a lot of money (CJ Interactive Multi-Media, 2014). This allows for the local, state, or Federal government to save on resources they would need to use if every case went to trial. It also saves on how much resources needs to go into the criminal justice system (CJ Interactive Multi-Media, 2014). The courts are all ready over loaded with cases and many have become extremely backlogged. By people plea bargaining it helps resolve the case faster and helps bring down the number of back logged cases in court. A plea bargain also saves on all parties having to go through a trial (CJ Interactive Multi-Media, 2014). Some trials can take up to several months and the outcome of the trial is very unpredictable. Plea barging can also help law enforcement get information they can use about other criminal activities (CJ Interactive Multi-Media,

    Read More

  • Courtroom 302 Chapter 1 Summary

    1110 Words  | 3 Pages

    Plea bargains are one of the most controversial debates that are discussed over the criminal justice court system. A plea bargain is when a defendant agrees to plead guilty to a crime and in exchange for something, for example a lesser sentence. There are three types of plea bargains. Charge bargaining is when a defendant pleads guilty to a less serious charge than the original charge. Count bargaining is when the defendant pleads guilty for some of the charge, but not all. Sentence bargaining is when the defendants get a lesser sentence than the maximum penalty. Through the course of this semester it has been brought to our attention, multiple times, about the problems plea bargaining has caused. Many defendants are pressured by those who surround them in

    Read More

  • Analysis Of The Cruel Hand By Michelle Alexander

    409 Words  | 1 Pages

    In Chapter 4, The Cruel Hand, Michelle Alexander does a great job analyzing the issues that many inmates go through when they get out of prison. This chapter was a bit more interesting to read compared to the last one. One passage that stood out to me was when Michelle Alexander stated, “Even if the defendant manages to avoid prison time by accepting a “generous” plea deal, he may discover that the punishment that awaits him outside the courthouse doors is far more severe” (Michelle Alexander Pg. 142). Like I mentioned in the beginning, when inmates are done serving their sentence they usually suffer on the outside world. That is because they’re now being labeled as criminals in our society and corporates/businesses have a little leverage on

    Read More

  • Should Plea Bargaining be Abolished?

    2271 Words  | 5 Pages

    One could wonder why plea bargains are even made. One reason would be that criminal courts are becoming clogged and overcrowded. Going through the proper procedure and processes that we are granted takes time. Trials can take anywhere from days to...

    Read More

  • The Death Penalty in the United States

    1557 Words  | 4 Pages

    The sentence for murder appears to be getting less severe as time passes. Crime is rampant and out of control. There must be a system to prevent these people from committing such grievous acts (Balanced Politics). Time spent in jail often is a means of stopping a few; but much more is needed in order to prevent recidivism. In some court cases a wide range of punishments that would cut the rate of crime should be available to prosecutors and judges (Balanced Politics). A judge could sentence a person to life in prison; but the criminal justice system may set this very same person free after ten or fifteen years in prison. Why must we put our trust in a judicial system that will let these vicious offenders out in society after ten or fifteen years in prison (Death Penalty). The judge may impose a life sent...

    Read More

  • Why Plea Bargains Are Efficient?

    365 Words  | 1 Pages

    I cannot say that I strongly agree or disagree that plea bargains are efficient because its efficiency solely depends on whether the defendant is innocent or guilty. When it comes to a person's life, one cannot trade justice with efficiency. (a) I strongly agree that the criminal processes should focus on delivering justice rather than wasting time by "horse trading." Negotiations are only beneficial to those who are guilty since they can have their charges dropped or reduced. Whereas, innocent defendants will blindly agree to the plea bargain to go home but they are forced to take responsibility for a crime they did not commit. Although plea bargains can substantially move a lot of cases through the legal system, it can also easily incite

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Plea Bargains

    933 Words  | 2 Pages

    For decades, we have been made to believe that criminals are people who have done harm to our society, violating the laws of the land, and don 't deserve a second chance. They should be locked away, and the keys should throw away. Unfortunately, today, our world is full of crimes and our system is getting overcrowded with criminals. However, with recent laws like the plea bargain proofs that there is hope and a way out to every situation. A plea bargain can be defined as negotiations during a criminal trial between the prosecutor and the defendant which result in a more lenient sentence than would have been recommended with the original charge (Farlex). Some would say that the use, or abuse, of the plea bargain, allows criminals

    Read More

  • Examples Of Integrative Bargaining

    102 Words  | 1 Pages

    An example of integrative bargaining is trying to decide how to split an orange between two students. One students wants the peel the orange to make preserve and the other student would like to make orange juice. In this situation, I think both of the students can benefit without losing out.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Incarceration And Rehabilitation

    883 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are better ways to punish criminals and protect society than mass incarceration. The state and local governments should be tough on crime, but “in ways that emphasize personal responsibility, promote rehabilitation and treatment, and allow for the provision of victim restitution where applicable” (Alec, 2014). The government also succeeds in overseeing punishment but fails to “…take into account the needs of offenders, victims, and their communities.” (Morris, 2002: Pg. 1 and 2). Alternatives to incarceration, such as sentencing circles, victim offender mediation, and family conferences, can successfully hold criminals responsible while allowing them a chance to get “back on their feet”. Research has proven that rehabilitation has lowered the rate of re-offenders, reducing the crime rate, protecting communities and also saves a lot of

    Read More

  • Negative Effects Of Plea Bargains

    80 Words  | 1 Pages

    In conclusion, plea bargains are here to stay but they are diminishing our criminal justice system. Although there are many positive factors, the negative factors are over powering the positive. Our criminal justice system needs to realize that they are making more work by giving out plea bargains. With the only goals being incapacitation and rehabilitation, recidivism is going to continue to increase instead of decrease. With the increase of crimes comes more of the repeating circle of plea bargains.

    Read More

  • Life or Death

    1022 Words  | 3 Pages

    It has been a topic of discussion for forever. Do we give convicted murderers the death penalty or let them live in a prison cell for a life without parole? If we get rid of the death penalty sentence there could be millions of dollars saved that could be put toward violence-prevention efforts to keep offenders on the right path. But on the other hand prisoners that are sentenced to life without parole are forced to live in a maximum-security prison with very few rights. The death penalty and life without parole both have positives and negatives therefore it would be very hard to pick a side.

    Read More

  • Life and Death

    1197 Words  | 3 Pages

    When a woman gets pregnant, she and her partner make a serious decision whether they should give birth to the unborn child or abort it. However, sometimes every couple can have a different outlook about giving birth or aborting because every male and female has his or her ways of thinking. In “Hills Like White Elephants,” the author, Ernest Hemingway tells a story of an American man and his girlfriend, Jig, who have a disagreement in the train station on the subject of whether to keep the unborn child or to abort. However, the author uses binary opposition of life and death to portray the polemic argument a couple encounters regarding abortion. As a symbol for the binary opposition of life and death, he represents the couple’s expressions, feelings, and the description of nature.

    Read More

More about Life or Death

Open Document