Jacob Zucker CJ101 Mr. Lybarger Plea Bargaining: Justice or Injustice? A plea bargain is a discussion between defense counsel and prosecution in which the accused agrees to plead guilty in exchange for certain considerations, such as reduced charges or a lenient sentence (Siegel, 2017, p. 670). To understand why plea bargaining is used so often, you must look at the pros and cons. In deciding if a plea bargain is the best option, then the pros must outweigh the cons and must favor the interests of the state. Some of the pros that stood out were the overall reduction of cost of the criminal prosecution and resources and prosecution being devoted to more serious cases. If the prosecution can push a plea bargain, then they can move on to a more serious case and get more money for their time and services. Plea bargains allow dangerous offenders to receive lenient sentences. Jesse Timmendequas, a previously convicted sex offender, was given a 10-year plea-bargained sentence for child rape. Upon his release, he raped and killed 7-year-old Megan Kanka in one of the nation’s most notorious crimes (Siegel, 2017, p. 392). In other cases, innocent people might plead guilty if they believe that the system is biased and that they have …show more content…
(n.d.). Retrieved June 17, 2017, from https://www.fbi.gov/resources/victim-assistance/a-brief-description-of-the-federal-criminal-justice-process Pezdek, K. (2012, March). A Preliminary Study of How Plea Bargaining Decisions by Prosecution and Defense Attorneys Are Affected by Eyewitness Factors. Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/238136.pdf Plea Bargaining | USAO | Department of Justice. (n.d.). Retrieved June 17, 2017, from https://www.justice.gov/usao/justice-101/pleabargaining Siegel, L., & Worrall, J. (2017). Pretrial and Trial Procedures. In Introduction to Criminal Justice (15th ed., pp. 389-395). Wadsworth Pub
Seigal, L. J., & Worrall, J. L. (2012). Introduction to criminal justice (13th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
In summation, is can be identified in this paper that eye witnesses do not play a constructive role within the criminal justice system. This can be seen through a thorough discussion of the many issues portrayed through this paper. To conclude Schmechel et al. (2006) reiterates that statements this paper has presented and discussed;
A plea bargain is determined good for someone based only on their facts and conditions of their case. A disadvantage of plea bargaining is actually admitting the guilt (Understanding). Plea bargains appear to only benefit the criminal because they ultimately receive a lesser punishment. A plea bargain might seem good now but it could have permanent impact on your life. An innocent person would most likely not want to plead guilty but could feel the pressure from lawyers to enter a plea just to avoid a lengthy and costly trial. Even if the innocent person accepts a plea with no jail time, they will still have the conviction on their record. I believe all cases should go to jury trail regardless of the time and cost because in all fairness it is the nest shot at finding the true criminal and issuing the appropriate punishment. Shamim Ebrahimi’s advice regarding plea bargains is, “Focus on the big picture, and make sure you are aware of your options and possible collateral consequences because, remember, plea bargains almost always require a defendant to plead guilty on the record, and more often than not that record will follow you around for the rest of your life”
Vallas, G. (2011). A survey of federal and state standards for the admission of expert testimony on the reliability of eyewitnesses. American Journal of Criminal Law, 39(1), 97-146. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.pioproxy.carrollu.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,cpid&custid=s6222004&db=aph&AN=74017401&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Schmalleger, Frank, Criminal Justice A Brief Introduction, Upper Saddle River, NJ, Pearson Education Inc. , 2010, Page 387
The justice system depends on eyewitness evidence to convict offenders. Eyewitness is a difficult task to achieve in the justice system. According to Wise, Dauphinais, & Safer (2007), in 2002 one million offenders were convicted as felons in America. Out of those one million offenders, 5000 of them were innocent in 2002 (Dauphinais, 2007). The Ohio Criminal Justice survey states that 1 out of 200 felony criminal cases is a wrongful conviction (Dauphinais et al., 2007). According to Dauphinais et al., (2007), Dripps said that eyewitness error is a huge factor in cases of wrong convictions. A study conducted in 1987 indicated that in roughly 80,000 criminal cases, eyewitness error was the only sole evidence against the defendant
Eyewitnesses are primarily used by the criminal justice system for investigating and prosecuting crimes, particularly in circumstances where it is the only evidence available (Wells & Olson, 2003). Their testimony is highly regarded as it allows for police, prosecutors, judges and juries to establi...
Fradella, H.F. (2006) Why judges should admit expert testimony on the unreliability of eyewitness testimony. Federal Courts Law Review. Retrieved from http://www.fclr.org/fclr/articles/html/2006/fedctslrev3.pdf
Wright, J. (2012). Introduction to criminal justice. (p. 9.1). San Diego: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/books/AUCRJ201.12.1/sections/sec9.1
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
In this paper I will evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of plea bargaining. I will define plea bargaining, distinguish between charge bargaining and sentence bargaining, and I will describe how plea bargaining reflects the crime control and due process models in criminal justice.
Many offenders feel pressured into taking a plea bargain, when a prosecutor gives a plea bargain most of the time there is a problem with the case, and pleading guilty is on one's record forever whether they committed the crime or not. Although being guilty or innocent is important it is not the subject in a plea bargain. When an offender is offered the plea bargain sometimes they are either pressured into taking it by the prosecutor, public, family, or most of the time defense attorneys. When prosecutors offer plea bargains there are usually something wrong with the case for example they do not have enough evidence or the witness is not credible or present, sort of like the Kalief Browder case. In the Kalief Browder case there was no evidence and no credible witness which is why they offered a plea bargain lesser than the maximum if Kalief was to go to court. When an offender pleads guilty they are marked forever. A guilty plea can never be taken back or away, it remains on a person’s record
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.
Schmalleger, F. (2009), Prentice Hall, Publication. Criminal Justice Today: An introductory Text for the 21st century
When people plea bargain in a trial it creates kind of a shallow grey area between how the criminal justice system is practiced and how it happens in real life. Plea bargaining is when the defendant chooses to plead guilty in hopes of a charge that will not be as bad, due to leniency, after a pre-arrangement between the defendant and prosecutor. Once the guilty plea is taken, instead of having the main attention on what happens with the judge and the jury, it shifts to what goes on with the defense counsel and prosecutor.