If you could take a deal that would swap your prison sentence from 20 to 16 years even if you were guilty would you? What if you and the defense lawyer didn’t know what the evidence was yet. What if the prosecutor said you can either take the deal or you can go away for as long as i can get? These occur in the plea bargaining system. Plea bargaining is an unethical practice because it can force innocent men to plead guilty, defense lawyers often can't see the evidence in time to advise their client, and it lets criminals get away with a lighter sentence than they should.
Plea Bargaining is the most effective tool of prosecutors to minimize the time required to obtain convictions. Around ninety percent of cases are concluded using plea bargaining. (Barkan and Bryjack, Page 2) This process moves cases through the system quickly and prevents the need to add more judges and court systems if these cases were to go to trial. (Barkan and Bryjack, Page 249) From the judge and prosecutors point of view, this is a necessary and effective method of managing caseloads.
There are many different offenses that get sent to juvenile court. Most crimes sent to juvenile court aren’t too serious, but are still bad enough to be sent to court. “Unofficial reports suggest that a higher percentage of juvenile are involved in minor criminal behavior; grossly underreported common offenses include vandalism, shoplifting, underage drinking, and marijuana use”(Hales). There are instances where more scarce offense occurs and sometimes more serious misdemeanors but the offenses aren’t as common as vandalism, thief, underage drinking, etc. Some uncommon cases are usually shootings or murders. Some scientists believe that violence in movies, video games and on television can effect teens.
Technically speaking, bail bond is a written promise from the end of a defendant. This bond indicates that a criminal defendant will be present at the court at a scheduled time and date, as per the instructions of the court. The amount of bail is generally set by the court.
With millions of criminal convictions a year, more than two million people may end up behind bars(Gross). According to Samuel Gross reporter for The Washington Post, writes that also “even one percent amounts to tens of thousands of tragic [wrongful conviction] errors”(Gross). Citizens who are wrongfully convicted are incarcerated for a crime he or she did not commit. Many police officers, prosecutors, and judges are responsible for the verdict that puts innocents into prison. To be able to get exonerated many wait over a decade just to get there case looked at, not many are able to have the opportunity of getting out. People plead guilty for crimes that are not committed by them to avoid trial, but by doing so the right decision wasn’t made.
People of all different races and ethnicities are locked behind bars because they have been convicted of committing a crime and they are paying for the consequences. When looking at the racial composition of a prison in the United States, it does not mimic the population. This is because some races and ethnicities are over represented in the correctional system in the U.S. (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2018). According Walker et al. (2018), African-Americans/Blacks make up less than fifteen percent of the U.S. population, while this race has around thirty-seven percent of the population in the correctional system today. Along with African-American/Blacks, the Hispanic population is underrepresented at both the state and federal levels while the Caucasian/White population are underrepresented (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2018).
Plea- bargaining is something that is happening in our court systems every day. Plea-bargaining is a choice that defendants are making when they don’t have many options. Can plea- bargains change your life? What effects will it have if you decide to do a plea? Well, plea bargains are not for everyone.
Plea bargains are negotiations between the prosecutor and the criminal defendant. In this negotiation, the criminal defendant consents to pleading guilty. When the criminal defendant takes the guilty plea, he or she is able receive reductions in their charges or sentences. There are pros and cons of plea bargains, but these bargains can be doing more harm than good. Plea bargaining is a simple process but can have long term repercussions. Criminal defendants should not be allowed bargain for a reduced sentence in exchange for a guilty plea because some defense lawyers may not represent the best interest of the client, it does not allow the criminal defendant to take full responsibility for their actions, and the victim and the family will not feel as justice was served if a violent crime had occurred.
This year has been a difficult year for the criminal justice system of Texas. From the multiple police brutality incidents to people dying police custody that shouldn’t. With the one of the highest percentage of its citizens incarcerated, we can start to see why people feel like the Texas Criminal Justice system has failed them. The plea bargain is just one example that the people feel like the justice system has failed them. I personally feel that even with all of Texas Criminal Justice system’s faults, I feel like Texans can come together to make the necessary changes to make better adapted to the newer generations morals. If not, then people are going to completely lose trust our justice system
A plea bargain is an agreement between the prosecutor and the defendant in a criminal case. The prosecutor gives the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty to a lesser charge or to the original charge with less than the maximum sentence. For example, the prosecution and the defense may agree to a misdemeanor charge instead of a felony charge or the parties may agree to a sentence of 12 years instead of 20 years if the recommended sentence for that crime is 10-20 years imprisonment.
In today's era, when a criminal is charged for various crimes their given a shortcut to justice by simply accepting a plea deal. In this case, Larry Servedio faces multiple felonies: first-degree kidnapping, first-degree rape, third-degree rape, third-degree criminal sexual act, third-degree criminal mischief, criminal impersonation, second-degree grand larceny, and second-degree strangulation. Servedio was also indicted for several misdemeanor charges: first-degree harassment, second-degree aggravated harassment, second-degree menacing and torturing and injuring an animal. If Mr. Servedio goes to trial and is able to prove his innocence of the charges pressed against him, then he is a free man and all charges get dropped. Yet, if Mr. Servedio
When the jury trial process is replaced with plea negotiations, we lose trust and reliability in the system. When we give efficiency that the plea bargain has provided power, it comes at a substantial cost. People who are indeed innocent of the crimes they were convicted have now been influenced into pleading guilty for the sake of efficiency. Not to mention the collateral consequences that accompany a person when they plead out. It also undermines the reliability of convictions in general (Gilchrist, 2011). Although she was innocent of the charges brought against her, Stewart took the plea. However, her choice had dire consequences, three years after, she is left destitute, ineligible for food stamps and government grants, unable to vote for
The role of the criminal prosecutor is to prove that that defendant is truly guilty. It is there job to look at all the evidence that is available and use that evidence to show why it is true that that person committed the crime so that they are prosecuted the way that they need to be. The job of the criminal defense attorney is to look at all the evidence that the prosecutor is bringing forth and to show why that evidence is not reliable or does not have any proof that it is linked to the person being accused of the crimes. It is their job to try to keep the accused person from being sentenced. The judicial officer is the person wills all the power to decide what happens to the person being accused. They are the ones that the information
There are cases stacked upon cases that must be attended to daily, while at the same time, crimes are being committed. The court system has trouble keeping up, and in order to cease long, drawn out trials, plea bargaining has been allowed in the criminal justice system. This is useful for both criminally charge individuals along with the courts themselves for several reasons. Most people know the case going on with Jared Fogle, the former representor of Subway. In 2015, Fogle decided to plead guilty to child pornography charges along with crossing state lines to exchange money for sex with a minor (Castillo, 2015). Based on this plea deal, Fogle will likely serve somewhere between five and twelve years in prison, pending approval from the court system. This plea deal also states that the government will recommend fewer than thirteen years in the prison system for the defendant, with Fogle paying a minimum of $100,000 for each victim involved in the case. Plea bargaining is extremely helpful for this case. For one thing, defendants that use plea bargaining can evade the expenses and the time of defending himself or herself at a trail, as well as get around risking a worse sentence and the bad exposure that could cause. In addition, the prosecution also saves time and money by avoiding a long, drawn out trial, and both of the sides do not have to stress about going to the trail. It does not matter which side instigates the plea bargain, whether it be the prosecutor or the defendant, but both sides to have to completely agree with each other before something occurs out of that plea bargain. Because of the circumstances, I believe that justice was served. The victims will be compensated for counseling based on what Fogle did, and Fogle will serve his
The biggest issue within the Criminal Justice system is the large number of wrongful convictions, innocent people sentenced to die for crimes they did not commit. People are put in prison for years, even executed for false convictions. This affects not only those put in prison but friends and family of the accused. Wrongful convictions aren’t solely a tragedy for those directly involved either. It weakens the faith the public has for the justice system as well as poses safety issues; when innocent people are put away, the real criminals are still out there. Luckily, it is known what causes wrongful convictions and how to fix them.