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Importance of plea bargaining in the justice system
Importance of plea bargaining in the justice system
Art of plea bargaining
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The art of plea bargaining is a tactic of the judicial system that keeps money and resources in mind when making these decisions. Plea deals help everyone involved. I think that the practice of plea bargaining should continue in this country for a variety of reasons. “The plea bargain, in which the defense attorney and the prosecutor reach an agreement: The defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for a reduction of charges or a lighter sentence. As a result of this exchange, the prosecutor gains a quick, sure conviction; the offender receives a shorter sentence: and the defense attorney can move on to the next case. Thus, the cooperation underlying the exchange promotes the goals of each participant.” (Cole & Smith. 2010. “The American System of Criminal Justice” Belmont, California. Wadsworth Cengage Learning).
Plea deals help everyone but I must also point out, that these plea deals also have its pitfalls. There are sometimes too light of sentences that are handed out, just to have a quick resolution, and come to find out, that the defendant has later committed an eve...
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.
A plea bargain is compliance between a prosecutor and defendant in which the accused offender agrees to plead guilty in return for some compromise from the prosecutor. The New Jim Crow, explains how most Americans have no clue on how common it is for people to be prosecuted without proper legal representation and are sentenced to jail when innocent out of fear. Tens of thousands of poor people go to jail every year without ever talking to a lawyer that could possibly help them. Over four decades ago, the American Supreme Court ruled that low-income people who are accused of serious crimes are entitled to council, but thousands of people are processed through America’s courts annually with a low resource lawyer, or no lawyer at all. Sometimes
...instead of 25 years if they pleaded guilty. (Wan 37) In addition, money can become a reason for defense attorney to encourage pleading guilty. Private defense attorney may want to spend more effort in cases where they have more possibility of winning and thus getting more money, and public defenders find pleading guilty an effective way to move through cases quicker. (Mohr 6) For prosecutors, “guilty pleas avoided ‘onerous and protracted’ trials whose outcomes – ‘losing’ or ‘having to oppose an appeal to the higher courts’ – were both undesirable.” (Smith 134) Finally for judges, plea bargain reduces their caseload, and elevates their reputation indirectly because accepting a plea bargaining also includes waiver of appeal to higher courts. (Mohr 6)
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
The benefits of reducing overcrowding, saving on costs, and giving the offender what they need make it worth looking at. Along with that, the options that it provides as far as sentencing gives prosecutors and judges the ability to choose their outcome for most cases. These programs all prove to be all well and good, with the exception of some programs like bootcamps, but still effective nonetheless.
After all, we are all human, and no one deserves to be tricked into plea bargain due to the prosecutor’s pushing their own agendas, or because of mental issues derived from solitary confinement. Most of all, how is someone supposed to support himself or herself if they don’t have a backbone support from reentry programs. The criminal justice system needs to undergo reformation and address the real reasons to high crime rates and inmate failures to sustain a successful life after the time they served. So who are we to deny a person the right to happiness if they serve their time and want to live a crime free life?
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...
phase of the criminal justice system, and to do so in a harmonized manner. Without a systematic
Punishment, when speaking on serious terms, is socially valuable because it deters criminals from repeating their crimes and may keep others from repeating the same acts. If in fact the deterring effect misses its point, it is the fault of the justice system the all the red tape found behind it. At its current standing, the system is viewed as a joke because no authority is taken, no one believes, let alone fears, the system. Both the lengthy time and the high expense result from innumerable appeals, including many technicalities which have little nothing to do with the question of guilt or innocence. If these wasteless amount of appeals were eliminated or at least controlled, then the procedure would be much shorter, less expensive and more
When the War on Drugs began, plea bargains were declared constitutional and had to be regularly used to deal with the sudden stress on the legal system (Berger). The courts, prosecutors, and public defenders couldn 't handle the sheer amount of cases; they now had to deal with by allowing them to go to trial. Once plea bargains were made constitutional, it began to impact the very foundations of the Justice System and those who work on it in several ways. Frankly, it 's my belief that career criminals or those who have committed serious offenses should not be allowed to make an appeal. Crimes like murder, theft of large amounts of money or assault cases should not be allowed to go to a plea bargain. On the other hand, first-time offenders, petty criminals and individuals who are in cases with circumstantial evidence should be allowed to plea. Plea bargaining, on the whole, greatly benefits the prosecutor and the Justice System. Also, it allows for the massive backlog of cases to be alleviated through other means and saves the government a lot of time, stress and taxpayer funds that can be used for more useful and relevant matters (Langden). Plea bargaining also greatly benefits the guilty. It allows for them to reduce the sentences and change what type of charge is left on their record. What a person ultimately found guilty of will have repercussions and having a lesser charge on their records can make a huge difference in their lives (Bernman). The difference between a misdemeanor and felony for some people is the difference between employed and
I believe that capital punishment is necessary to ensure justice. Certain criminals commit crimes so great that they warrant death. The emotional tolls of the people around the victim can be alleviated by the death of the perpetrator. Prisons are inherently difficult to run, and capital punishment reduces the efforts that must be expended to successfully manage a prison. Capital punishment reduces crime in the way that it offers an incentive great enough to prevent offenses such as mass murder. Capital punishment holds much support in its favor, and I believe that it should remain.
More are sentencing options are great because just like every person is different, so is the crime. Prison may not always be the most effective response for people, so If courts have options other than incarceration, “they can better tailor a cost-effective sentence that fits the offender and the crime, protects the public, and provides rehabilitation” (FAMM, 2011). Findings have also proven that alternative saves taxpayers money. “It costs over $28,000 to keep one person in federal prison for one year1 (some states’ prison costs are much higher). Alternatives to incarceration are cheaper, help prevent prison and jail overcrowding, and save taxpayers millions” (FAMM, 2011, para. 3). Lastly, alternatives protect the public by reducing crime. There is a 40% chance that all people leaving prison will go back within three years of their release (FAMM, 2011). “Alternatives to prison such as drug and mental health courts are proven to confront the underlying causes of crime (i.e., drug addiction and mental illness) and help prevent offenders from committing new crimes” (FAMM, 2011, para.
The system has gone as deep as to making it so that even if a person has not committed a crime, but is being charged for it they can agree to a plea bargain, which makes it so even though the person did not do it the system is going to have them convicted of it anyway (Quigley 1). “As one young man told me ‘who wouldn’t rather do three years for a crime they didn’t commit than risk twenty-five years for a crime they didn’t do?” (Quigley 2). The criminal justice system has scared the majority of the population into believing that even though they did not commit a crime, they are convicted of it.
...ct that in less serious crimes the defendant will plead guilty in order to receive a better deal.
The present system of justice in this country is too slow and far too lenient. Too often the punishment given to criminal offenders does not fit the crime committed. It is time to stop dragging out justice and sentencing and dragging our feet in dispensing quick and just due. All punishment should be administered in public. It is time to revert back to the "court square hanging" style of justice. This justice would lessen crime because it would prove to criminals that harsh justice would be administered.