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History Of Discretion And Plea Bargaining

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History of Discretion

Plea bargaining is often associated with the defense and prosecution making “deals” until an agreement is reached on a sentence for the offender. Often times, plea bargaining leads to an offender pleading guilty for a lesser sentence than a sentence obtained from being convicted in trial (Thistlethwaite 2014). Plea bargains can be controversial because some people feel the offender should be punished fully for the crime(s) they have committed (“Plea” 2016). For example, if the offender pleads guilty to robbery and assault, rather than getting sentenced seven years for robbery and fifteen years for assault, they may only get a total of eighteen years for both. On the other hand, plea bargaining is useful when it comes to controlling caseloads. Without plea bargains, courts would become overburdened with cases. Prosecutors can also focus on more serious crimes because plea bargaining helps resolve their case more rapidly. This also helps the defendants save money because they don’t have to spend money defending themselves at trial (“Plea” 2016). There are two types of plea bargaining. Charge bargaining involves the defendant pleading guilty for a lesser charge so that the greater charges will be dropped. Sentence bargaining is when the defendant pleads guilty to the stated charge in order to receive a lesser sentence (“Plea” 2016). Plea bargaining has many advantages and disadvantages in our court system that remain controversial.

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