Councilman Gallagher was accused of having raped a woman whom he had a meeting with last July. One side says the sex was consensual and the other says it wasn’t and that he raped her. When the case was dismissed by the judge because of unfair and irrelevant questions, the Councilman was offered a plea bargain. Gallagher was first offered a plea bargain that would keep him out of jail but he would have to admit being guilty of committing the above accusations. He denied that offer and was made another.…
The Defendant when his daughter was living with him constantly updated the Plaintiff of what was going on with their daughter.…
The concept of plea bargaining became a common means to resolve criminal cases in the early 1900s because not everyone that was accused of a crime had a lawyer to represent them in a trial. As the criminal justice system evolved, and there were more and more cases to prosecute, plea-bargaining was used more often so that all parties would have a faster resolution to the case, as opposed to going through a lengthy trial. The definition of plea bargaining is “the process whereby the accused and the prosecutor in a criminal case work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the case subject to court approval [that] usually involves the defendant’s pleading guilty to a lesser offense or to only some of the counts of a multicounty indictment in return for a lighter sentence than the possible for the graver charge.” (Siegel, Schmalleger, & Worrall, 2011, Chapter 12, Plea Bargaining and Guilty Pleas).…
Plea Bargaining has become a major factor in our criminal justice system. Like all controversial topics there are many pros and cons that make it hard to decide what is right and wrong about the situation. I personally feel that plea bargaining should be abolished. Plea bargains are creating harm to our criminal justice system. Due to plea bargains the criminal justice system is being undermined and losing control of what is happening to criminals.…
Brief: Respondent was arrested and charged with possession of methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, in violation of 84 Stat. 1260. On October 17, 1991, respondent and his attorney asked to meet with the prosecutor to discuss the possibility of cooperating with the Government. At the beginning of the meeting, the prosecutor informed respondent that he had no obligation to talk, but that if he wanted to cooperate, he would have to be completely truthful. As a condition of proceeding with the discussion, the prosecutor indicated that the respondent would have to agree that any statements he made could be used to impeach any contradictory testimony he might give at trial if it went that far. Respondent conversed with his counsel and agreed to proceed under the prosecutor’s conditions. The respondent admitted to knowing that the package he attempted to sell to the undercover cop did contain methamphetamine. Respondent claimed that he did not know Shuster was manufacturing methamphetamine at his residence and later confessed that he did know of Shuster manufacturing methamphetamine in his residence. Respondent minimized his role in Shuster’s methamphetamine operation by claiming that he had not visited Shuster’s residence for at least a week before his arrest. The government showed the respondent surveillance evidence showing that his car was at Shuster’s residence the day before the arrest. The meeting ended on the basis that the respondent failed to provide completely truthful information. Respondent was tried on the methamphetamine charges and took the stand at his own defense. He maintained that he was not involved in the methamphetamine trafficking and he had thought Shuster was using his home laboratory to make plastic explosives for the CIA. He denied knowing that the package he delivered to the…
By not producing results that correlate with the outcome, plea bargaining weakens the validity of the criminal justice system. Validity or legitimacy is a very important characteristic of the legal system’s effectiveness. The view of the legal system is determined considerably on whether or not the system operates in harmony with basic rules of procedural fairness, for example treating cases alike or allowing parties an opportunity to be heard. Nevertheless, a system that fails to function under such rules will lose their…
The main fault that I see with a plea bargain is that it violates the six amendment. The reason why the sixth amendment is in violation is that plea bargaining goes against what it stands for. The sixth amendment states that everyone has the right to a fair trial; however, most cases are not even analyzed in front of a judge or jury because of a plea bargain. The main reason a plea bargain is put into play is to push a case through the system faster and resolve it quicker. Furthermore, everyone knows that when situations are rushed that information is likely to be missed. For example, there are many situations where defendants take a plea bargain to stray away from more intense punishment. However, many individuals who take this bargain are…
A plea bargain (“offer”) is an acquiescent in a criminal case whereby the prosecution may offer the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, conventionally to a lesser charge or to the pristine criminal charge with a proposal of a lighter than the maximum sentence. This opportunity sanctions defendants to avoid the risk of a conviction by trial on a more serious charge. This allows a court’s caseloads to be lighter without exhausting resources of a court, potential public advocators, and prosecutors who are all salaried at the expense of tax payers.…
The question we are debating today is whether or not plea-bargaining undermines the Criminal justice system? The job of the Criminal justice system is to protect the citizens of the United States. How are we protecting them if we give criminals shorter sentences than they deserve? When we plea bargain we release more criminals back into the streets and put citizens of the United States' safety at risk. A plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case in which a prosecutor and a defendant arrange to settle the case against the defendant. The United states department of justice's mission statement reads: To enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law; to ensure public safety against threats foreign and domestic; to provide federal leadership in preventing and controlling crime; to seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior; and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans. This statement is being undermined because not…
Using the fairness and justice decision-making process it made me decide that the use of plea bargaining was unethical; due to the fact that it was not fair that criminals who have committed unlawful acts like rape, robbery, and numerous horrendous crimes were given leniency just because they are acknowledging they executed the offense. Stating your guilty doesn’t mean they reflected upon their actions and are ready to start a new leaf. They have instigated the felony and it is only right that they get the full consequence of their atrocity. Furthermore, what’s worse is that because of the pressure and fear of being convicted, the innocent plead guilty and the immoral run free and continue to disrupt the peace of the community. In conclusion, there is no fairness and justice when there is plea bargaining.…
As Nataskie stated above, there is a place and a need for plea bargaining in our criminal justice system. Although it is true that plea bargaining gives a guilty person the opportunity to admit to their crime and accept the punishment for it, they are likely more motivated by the fact that plea bargaining involves the perpetrator receiving a reduced sentence of some sort. Another reason for continuing with plea bargaining, as a tool in the criminal justice system, is because often it affords the prosecutor the means necessary to get a lesser criminal to testify against a more significant criminal who otherwise might go free. Plea bargaining should maintain an active role in all justice systems regardless of whether they are local, state,…
A plea bargain is an agreement in a criminal case between the prosecutor and defendant whereby the defendant agrees to plead guilty to a particular charge in return for some concession from the prosecutor. This may mean that the defendant will plead guilty to a less serious charge or to one of several charges, in return for the dismissal of other charges; or it may mean that the defendant will plead guilty to the original criminal charge in return for a more lenient sentence. A plea bargain allows both parties to avoid a lengthy criminal trial and may allow criminal defendants to avoid the risk of conviction at trial on a more serious charge. For example, in the U.S. legal system, a criminal defendant charged with a felony theft charge, the conviction of which would require imprisonment in state prison, may be offered the opportunity to plead guilty to a misdemeanor theft charge, which may not carry a custodial sentence.…
Plea bargaining is defined as the process of negotiating an agreement among the defendant, the prosecutor, and the court as to an appropriate plea and associated sentence in a given case. The advantage for the defense is that less work is required on their part and they typically receive the same amount of money in return. An advantage for the prosecutor is they get a conviction and can alter the sentence any way they see fit as well as maintain an acceptable conviction rate. The court system heavily relied on the use of pleas to keep the system moving. In cases involving a plea the judge is able to dispose of a case quickly and move on to the next. In terms of jails and prisons plea-bargaining can also reduce the amount of inmate entering the facilities as jail time may have been suspended as a condition of a plea bargain. For a guilty defendant, the advantages to a plea bargain are clear; either reduced charges or a reduced sentence. Sometimes a plea deal can reduce a felony charge to a misdemeanor, but thats only a advantage to the defendant. Many plea deals have resulted in a reduction of sentence for the defendant. One gain in the plea bargain system is the fact that the judge in the case does not have to accept it. The prosecution can only recommend the agreement to the judge, but he cannot guarantee that the judge will follow it. As far as the victim goes, plea bargaining can give them closure to go on with their life and receive the justice they seek. Some states have victims' rights law that require a prosecutor to discuss the terms of any plea deal with the victim of the crime before making the offer to the defendant. In my opinion, plea bargaining is acceptable because it saves the system a great amount of time, money and resources only if it was entered with full knowledge and willingness. Even though the defendant in the end may not get a sentence agreed upon by others, they still have to serve time for their acts of crime. Plea…
A solicitor has argued that there is “widespread abuse of the plea bargaining system”, cautioning that defendants arguing serious crimes are negotiating their way to lesser charges. In the case of Nannette May, her attack may receive as little as 7 years in jail because of a plea bargain, without the appropriate consultation with victims. This case is significant because it…
Plea bargaining is not a useful tool. The court systems, in order to save themselves from a trial, “…forces the party into a situation where they have to take a guess about what the evidence is, about how strong the case might be, and they have to make that guess against the background of enormously severe…