Plea Bargaining Advantages

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1. According to “A Brief Introduction to Criminal Justice” book plea bargaining is a process of negotiation that usually involves the defendant, the prosecutor, and the defense counsel and is founded on the mutual interests of all involved. The purpose of plea bargaining is for defense attorneys and their clients who will agree to a plea of guilty when they are unsure of their ability to win acquittal at trial. Plea bargaining offers prosecutors the additional advantage of a quick conviction without the need to commit the time and resources necessary for trial. Benefits to the defendant include the possibility of reduced or combined charges, reduced defense costs, and a shorter sentence that might otherwise be anticipated. (228) Plea bargaining …show more content…

Since they circumvent the trial process, plea bargains can be abused by prosecutors and defense attorneys who are more interested in a speedy resolution than justice being served. Sometimes plea bargaining can result in defendants being convicted for crimes they did not commit. There are times where innocent defendants who have had past criminal records with take a plea deal in order to avoid a trial and have taken reduced charges. (229) Given the issues associated with plea bargaining, I do not believe that it is an acceptable practice in some cases. As the book says that there are innocent people who are charged and convicted for crimes that they did not even commit but their past gets in the way and they may feel force to take a plea bargaining if they believe the judge will wrongfully convict them. Also there have been cases where people have taken a plea bargain after having committed a worse crime and they are let off the hook and are charged for a lesser crime they had recently committed which is not fair for the victim. After all justice will be served at some point and the victim will get closure and the malefactor will pay its

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