Without plea bargains, our court system would be more swamped than it already is. Another reason is the strength of the case. If there is a question whether the evidence would bring a conviction, then the plea bargain would at least give them the conviction. And if the evidence is obvious and strong, the plea bargain would be good for the defendant, because he wouldn’t have to defend himself in court. Because prosecutors are “graded” on their conviction rate, getting those
Many armed robbers are not new to the crime and usually have a criminal history of robbery or criminal behavior in their past. These career criminals are a major problem and commit the most serious crimes over and over again. While statistics show that the rate is going down, we would like to further propose a bill that would help to stop this crime from occurring all together. Our proposed plan to reduce this activity is to double the maximum prison term for anyone convicted of armed robbery. These changes will be effective by keeping these offenders behind bars for longer, preventing them from committing the same crime again.
Plea bargaining is a process within the criminal justice system and it takes place between the two parties involved in a criminal case that is the prosecutor and the defendant .The defendant is asked to enter into a guilty plea by the prosecutor in exchange for a lighter sentence and in some cases the prosecutor might even consider reduction of the charges as an incentive for the defendant to enter into a guilty plea (McConnell, Michael & Chester, 1999). According to McConnell, Michael and Chester (1999), plea bargaining has proved to be beneficial to the criminal justice system and for this reason I believe attorneys should be allowed to use this tool in settling their cases. Some of the benefits that have resulted in plea bargaining as a means of settling cases are discussed as under:
Intermediate sanctions are a variety of punishments that are more restrictive than traditional probation but less severe and costly than incarceration. The purpose of intermediate sanctions is to make the offender pay for the crime they committed in a way that isn’t unfair or to costly to the justice system. For example, if a person gets a speeding ticket, instead of putting them in jail for a year which would cost us a lot of money, we just make them pay a fine. The idea of intermediate sanctions is good because it saves us money and gives people that commit non serious offenses or crimes the chance to show they don’t belong in jail. On the other hand, it may lead some people to think that it is ok for them to do these offenses because they don’t have to go to jail as a consequence.
Plea Bargaining: A Trick To Convict? Plea bargaining consists of an agreement (formal or informal) between the defendant and the prosecutor. The prosecutor typically agrees to a reduced prison sentence in return for the defendant’s waiver of his constitutional right against self-incrimination and his right to trial. Is it proper for a government that is constitutionally required to respect the right to trial by jury to use its charging and sentencing powers to pressure an individual to waive that right? Plea bargaining unquestionably alleviates the workload of judges, prosecutors, and defense lawyers.
With a guilty plea the process shifts the focus from the jury and judge to the prosecutor and defence counsel. It expected by the public for the truth to be discovered through the fact finding trial process. In practice plea bargaining may prevent a public finding of the facts and substitute a behind the scenes cut short plea bargaining process that fashions an offence that may or may not be supported by the evidence and this also determines the variety of penalties available to the court and limits the discussion of the evidence (Palermo et al, 1998). Plea bargaining is a notion which is well known and generally used and accepted in the United States. This usually consists of a deal being made between the prosecutor and the defence an example of plea bargaining is when the prosecution offers to drop a more serious charge against the accused in exchange for guilty plea of a lesser charge and the
To give prisoners tools to succeed out of confinements. Allow more prisoners to reduce their sentences through credit for good behavior. Release more elderly prisoners from Bureau of Prisons custody. Releasing low risk offender will drop prison population a lot. For they will have a lower risk of recidivism and actually become a working part of society then generate a positive incline on recidivism statistics.
The majority of studies examining incapacitation effects demonstrate a small but positive effect in reducing crime. However, this crime prevention effect is associated with significant increases in prison populations. Crime can be reduced if the career criminals were identified and incapacitated. This selective incapacitation strategy would identify the offenders who were predicted to commit serious crimes at a higher rate so they could be incarcerated for long periods of
The occurrence of plea bargaining and pleading guilty even though the defendant professes his or her innocence is a rising and questionable phenomenon in the US court system. Pleas are sought to minimize sentence and the number of trials. (Mousseau, 2008) Pleading guilty typically comes with a “built-in incentive,” lessened sentence in exchange for a guilty plea. The defendant
Criminals might think twice before they commit a crime if they knew they were going to get the death penalty. Retribution is another pro for capital punishment, because the death penalty is a real punishment. Instead of sending the criminal to a rehabilitative program, he or she is forced to suffer for the crime they committed. Retribution helps console the family of the victims, who are grieving over the death of a loved one. Capital punishment saves money and overcrowding in the prisons.