Sentencing discounts are reductions given to defendants who cooperate with authorities when they plead guilty. Cooperation can include providing information to law enforcement, and offering testimony in court. The current law regarding sentencing varies, “In the SA Magistrates Court a defendant may receive a reduction of up to 40%” (ISC GOV, 2023). Sentencing discounts can vary depending on the state and the country. According to NZ Herald, 2024 the website states that “However, New Zealand sets no limits on how much a judge can reduce sentences”. The discounts In New Zealand, sentencing discounts are stated to be “lower than victims and the public expect.” Sentencing discounts can be a useful way to encourage cooperation with the law enforcement in …show more content…
Although offering reduced sentences in exchange for cooperation can lead to some people worrying the defendant may not always tell the truth or only help due to wanting a shorter sentence. When constructing a decision for sentencing discounts, many factors are considered, including assessing the case, consulting legal counsel, evaluating sentencing alternatives, reviewing precedent and case law, considering victim impact statements, and potentially preparing negotiated plea agreements. Judges evaluate accountability, rehabilitation, deterrence, and social protection while determining the appropriate sentence. Judges may also consider the defendants remorse, prior criminal records, and impact on victims. (Victims of Crime South Australia, 2020) Sentence discounts for guilty pleas are typically viewed by parliament as being beneficial since they simplify court proceedings, reduce the strain on the legal system, and encourage the defendant to accept accountability. There are many different opinions in the community on sentencing discounts for guilty
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.
...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)
The court system is set up to deter the person specifically from a crime but also as a general deterrent to prevent the public from committing the same crime. With certain crimes, such as impaired driving, an accused may be given a stiffer penalty if found guilty than if taking a plea as the courts will want to prevent others from committing the same act and will give a harsh penalty as a warning to the public that the courts take this offence seriously. If an accused is a repeat offender, their sentence will become increasingly strict as their record lengthens. The courts will want to impose a specific deterrent and will give a harsher punishment as a means to cause the accused think twice about committing the act again. Therefore, pleading down to a lesser charge will help the accused to avoid the harsher
Nearly every other week, there is a story in the news regarding a murderer who was sentenced to probation, and a first-time offender who was given a hefty prison sentence for committing a very light-weight crime. Potential criminals may see this and carry out a crime, knowing that there are no harsh consequences for doing so. If these systemic flaws were ironed out, potential criminals may be less tempted to commit any crimes, now that the odds are against
By using plea bargain may be an agreeing to many things. It is very common in a plea bargain with first time offenders that are being accused with a less serious crime to use plead deals, so they can only be sentenced...
When an offender is sentenced to imprisonment, post sentencing considerations must be made based on an evaluation of the individual and this will determine the manner in which the prison sentence is served. Post sentencing considerations include security classifications, parole and continued detention orders. These offer different levels of incapacity, accessibility of rehabilitation programs and incentives for good behaviour, and are implicated in order to achieve justice through upholding the rights of the victim, the offender and the wider community.
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
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,
Mandatory sentencing refers to the practice of parliament setting a fixed penalty for the commission of a criminal offence. Mandatory sentencing was mainly introduced in Australia to: prevent crime, to incapacitate the offenders, to deter offenders so they don’t offend again, to create a stronger retribution and to eliminate inconsistency. There is a firm belief that the imposition of Mandatory sentencing for an offence will have a deterrent effect on the individual and will send a forcible message to the offenders. Those in favour argue that it will bring consistency in sentencing and conciliate public concern about crime and punishment.
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...
Sentencing is the punishment given to a person convicted of a crime. A sentence is ordered by the judge, based on the verdict of the jury (or the judge's verdict if there was no jury) within the possible punishments set by state law (or Federal law in convictions for a Federal crime).The primary goals of sentencing are punishment, deterrence incapacitation and rehabilitation. Juries maybe entitled to pronounce sentences but in most circumstances sentencing is performed by the judge.
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...
Mandatory minimum sentencing is the practice of requiring a predetermined prison sentence for certain crimes. The most notable mandatory minimums are the ones implemented in the 70’s and 80’s, hoping to combat the rising drug problem. Mandatory minimum sentencing has existed in the United States nearly since its very birth, with the first mandatory minimums being put into place around 1790. Recently, as the marijuana laws of many states have scaled back in severity, the issue of mandatory minimums has caused controversy in the US. There are two distinct sides to the argument surrounding mandatory minimum sentencing. One group believes we have a moral obligation to our country requiring us to do no less than lock up anyone with illegal drugs
Sentencing is the process by which people who have been found guilty of offending against the criminal law have sanctions imposed upon them in accordance with that particular law. The sentence of the court is the most visible aspect of the criminal justice system’s response to a guilty offender. In Tasmania, the Sentencing Act 1997 was enacted to amend and consolidate the law relating to the sentencing of offenders. The crime rate in Tasmania is lower than it was 10 years ago but higher than it was 20 years ago. In the Australian context, Tasmania is below the national average of recorded crimes for the crimes of robbery, burglary and motor vehicle theft.
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