Plea Bargaining Essay

Open - Ended Response
Plea Bargaining
Rhea Mathews
Period 2

Plea Bargaining is an agreement between the defendant and the prosecutor, in which the defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for an agreement by the prosecutor to drop the charges or reduce the charge to a lesser offense or sentence. In American criminal courts, more than 90 percent of convictions are obtained through plea bargains. The idea of using plea bargains can be viewed differently, however plea bargaining is a valuable tool in court and should not be abolished. Plea Bargaining requires less time and work than other trials and reduces overcrowded jails. It allows defendants to receive a lighter sentence and not have to pay attorney fees. Finally, a plea bargain can

be used as a compromise between the prosecutor and the defendant. Plea Bargaining greatly impacts how the case is played out.

First of all, plea bargaining requires less time and work in trials.

It reduces overcrowded courts resulting in the early release of convicted criminals. In the article “Plea Bargaining” it states, “Time pressure and an overloaded criminal justice system lead many prosecutors and judges to favor plea bargaining. Plea bargains require much less time and work than trials, which can take months to complete. Plea bargaining also reduces overcrowding in jails, which sometimes results in the early release of convicted criminals to make room for people awaiting trial.” This explains how plea bargaining is useful to not only the defendant but everyone in the court. It allows the trial to be faster and smoother in contrast to being slower. It takes a very long time for a case to get a trial date and by plea bargaining it takes less time. In addition, the courts and the jails are less overcrowded. Many judges see plea bargains as an effective way to deal with less serious criminals and reserve limited prison space for serious threats to the community. In the passage “Issue Overview” Plea Bargains” it says, “Overcrowding has become a major issue for the U.S. prison system.” This shows how with a plea bargain it is not only helping the defendant and the prosecutor but the government too. Plea bargaining is beneficial in courts because it makes cases easier to handle and jails to not be

overcrowded.

Another reason not to abolish plea bargaining, would be that it allows defendants to receive a lighter sentence and it helps save money.

In the article “Plea Bargaining” it indicates, “...critics focus on the benefits that plea bargaining gives to defendants. They argue that plea bargaining softens the deterrent effect of punishment because it gives criminal defendants the power to bargain for lesser punishments.” This demonstrates how people who are accused can receive a lighter punishment rather than serving a longer one. For example, if you are accused of kidnapping you may have to serve time for 20 years or so but with a plea bargain, you can lower that to maybe 15 years. Furthermore, when someone is accused and they have a trial, each side's needs to pay for an attorney and there are also expenses for filing fees, jury, copying and postage. However, when the defendant agrees to plea bargain, there isn’t a jury trial resulting in less expenses. For example, in expresses in “Plea Bargaining”, “Defendants usually receive a lighter sentence with plea bargaining than they would in a jury trial, and they pay less in attorney fees.” This implies an advantage of plea bargaining since there is less expenses involved with plea bargaining. By plea bargaining, the accused get a better bargain and dealing with money, there are less

expenses.

Finally, a plea bargain can be used a compromise between the prosecutor and the defendant. For the defendant, they receive a lighter sentence and save money. Plea bargaining is also is favorable to the prosecutor because it ensures the conviction of the accused and also leads to the defendant providing useful information in another court. In the passage of “Plea Bargaining” it declares, “Plea bargaining helps the prosecutor by ensuring the conviction of the accused, and it sometimes leads the defendant to provide useful information in another case.” This clarifies a benefit for the prosecutors. Another benefit for the prosecutors is that if they think that the punishment is too severe, they can choose plea bargaining to lighten the sentence. For instance in the article “Plea Bargaining” it announces , “Plea bargaining also allows prosecutors to give the defendant a reduced sentence if they think the standard sentence for the crime is too severe.” This describe how the prosecutor has a chance to lighten the load of the accused and give their opinion in what happens to the convicted. Plea bargaining is not only useful to the accused but the prosecutor as well.

Plea Bargaining is a valuable tool to be used in court. It is compliable for the court as it reduces time, fees and overcrowded jails and helps the defendant receives a lighter sense while the prosecutor gets an ensurement of a punishment for the defendant. While plea bargaining may be viewed with disdain by much of the public, given the amount of crime and the present structure of our judicial system, it is unlikely to disappear anytime soon.