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However, in 1852, the Massachusetts legislature removed the prosecution's power to nol pros without the judge's consent. This eliminated the prosecution's key leverage over defendants in liquor cases: the power to charge and then drop some charges in exchange for a plea. Sure enough, the number of clear plea bargains dropped dramatically, and the number of trials increased concomitantly (Fisher, 2003)."
BENEFITS
There are numerous benefits to using the plea bargain system. The first and most important benefit from the standpoint of a prosecutor is the fact that it provides an automatic conviction. The prosecution does not have to worry about whether the evidence will hold up under the scrutiny of the system. They have to wonder if their witnesses will be believable during a traditional trial. In addition the prosecution is always at the mercy of the jury members. Jury members are human and subject to human emotion and error. A prosecutor faced with a trial will always be concerned that the jury will feel sorry for the defendant and even if convinced that the defendant committed the crime will acquit or provide a not guilty verdict.
All of these elements come into play when a defendant chooses to go to trial.
The plea bargain method also saves a significant amount of time and money. A trial involves not only the time and services of the government provided prosecution, it also often involves the expense of hiring expert witnesses and their accommodations during the trial period. The cost of legal investigations are also born by the state and federal taxpayers and can be quite costly.
The benefits of the plea bargain system far outweigh the negative elements of its use but there are some negative elements involved.
NEGATIVE ELEMENTS
When one decides to use a plea bargain arrangement rather than go to trial it...
Benefits From Plea Bargaining? Although the U.S. Constitution guarantees all defendants a trial by jury, individuals entering the criminal justice system today have about a one-in-twenty chance of actually undergoing a trial, with the rest of the cases being plea bargained away. While this approach facilitates the disposition of cases in already overbooked courtrooms, plea bargaining has been the source of a growing amount of criticism as a result of
Plea Bargaining Pleading for Justice Plea bargaining by its very nature implies negotiation, which in turn means that two or more parties are seeking to achieve specific goals with the cooperation of the other parties. In the absence of plea bargaining the parties would face each other in court as adversaries in front of a referee and their conduct and the trial's proceedings would be strictly controlled according to the law and
The ethical considerations have been addressed in the survey by the elements of the plea bargain provided to the individuals surveyed. Herzog's study shall serve as the model for the study proposed here. This study should serve anyone interested in understanding the public opinion and perceptions as they relate to plea bargaining. References (recommended) www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5013705813 Bibas, S. (2005). White-Collar Plea Bargaining and Sentencing after Booker. William and Mary Law Review, 47(3), 721+.
" This means that, "It is an indictment of the criminal justice system, not plea bargaining itself" (Sandefur, 2003, p. 31). The Constitution incorporated the right to a trial into the process, and it does not necessarily entail that: the defendant needs to know his rights in waiving them or hiring a legal counsel to help. Sandefur finally stated that, "Plea bargaining is not perfect, but its problems are procedures
Plea Bargaining Many criminal cases are often resolved out of court through agreement between the aggrieved party and the offender. The process of achieving such a settlement is referred to as Plea Bargain in law. It is a practice that is used in many jurisdictions to resolve cases. Either of the sides in the case may initiate the Plea bargain process. Both sides have to agree before such a process succeeds
history plea bargaining? When ? 2. What recent statistics plea bargaining U.S. ( current year)? What Bargaining With Pleas The history of plea bargaining can be traced back to the end of the colonial era in the United States. Plea bargaining was known to exist in this country since at least 1780, a fact that is corroborated by author George Fisher. Fisher dedicated a significant amount of research to the history
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