Plea Bargaining

The demand by the current administration to push Congress to select more judges may be political, but the fact is that the American court system is severely strained. For that reason, more and more plea bargains are urged on many defendants, in order to avoid lengthy court trials. The fact seems clear, however, that it is the poor and the naïve, and those not represented by top attorneys who succumb to plea bargains. Plea bargains may be short cuts in criminal justice, and for that reason "it may surprise many to learn that nearly 95 percent of all cases resulting in felony convictions never reach a jury.

Instead, they are settled through plea bargains in which a defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for a reduced sentence" (PBS 2004 1). There is no doubt that this is a short cut which many defendants accept. However, sometimes the fact seems clear that they are talked into it, with the idea that a jury trial may find them guilty and therefore a harsher sentence may be imposed. It is the concern about paying for attorneys and a trial that literally forces many indigent or unwary defendants to accept plea bargains because they cannot afford top legal representation.

Plea bargains may be a necessary evil, as far as the general judicial system is concerned, but sometimes lawyers and attorneys use plea bargains to eliminate time and trouble of actually hearing a case. On this POBS broadcast, for example, there was clear evidence of the problem with plea bargains in some cases. "'[The judge] told me point blank-he said, 'I will give your son 25 to life, so you better take the plea, or if you don't take the plea, he's getting it,'' says Charles Gampero, Sr., whose son is now entering his ninth year in prison. 'We took the plea agreement thinking that the judge knew what he was talking about and my son would be home by the time he's 27," Gampero Sr. says. 'It didn't work out'" (PBS 2004 3).

A valid argument by legal experts for accepting plea bargains is this: "For most defendants, the principal benefit of plea bargaining is receiving a lighter sentence for a less-severe charge than might result from taking the case to trial and losing. In addition, defendants who are represented by private counsel can save a bundle on attorney fees by accepting a plea bargain" (Anon 2006 1).

Works Cited:

Person, C. (ed.): "Plea Bargaining: An Unconstitutional Delegation of Judicial Power to the Executive Branch of Government" carlpers@ix.netcom.com

Anon. "Plea Bargain" The Plea (PBS Broadcast), June 17, 2004 www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/plea/

No author listed: "Criminal Lawyers and Procedure" www.nolo.com/.../catID/D4C65461-8D33-482C-92FCEA7F2ADED29A/104/143/272/ART

However, there are opponents. "Plea Bargaining (is) an Unconstitutional Delegation of Judicial Power to the Executive Branch of Government" (Person 2006 1). Pro or con, as noted above, nearly all felony cases are "solved" or at least removed from court calendars through plea bargaining. Of course, every defendant, by Constitutional law, has the right to a speedy trial. It is obvious, however, that most defendants accept the advice of lawyers and judges, or family members and friends, and tend to accept lesser punishment in lieu of a trial which may cost them more time in prison.