Plea Bargaining

[Guest]

I'm posting this new, so as not to threadjack Lavenders Constitution vs The PoPo thread.


Why do we offer plea bargaining? Is it simply the get the case through and done sooner? Why give people softer sentences just because they're willing to admit to different levels of guilt? Does it have to do with police not being able to prove certain aspects, or is it because shiteater lawyers just want to improve their case records? Questions and more questions.

 

[Krypto]

oops, that was me.

nt.

 

[Weird Harold]

Originally posted by Krypto
Why do we offer plea bargaining? Is it simply the get the case through and done sooner? Why give people softer sentences just because they're willing to admit to different levels of guilt? Does it have to do with police not being able to prove certain aspects, or is it because shiteater lawyers just want to improve their case records? Questions and more questions.

Most often, plea bargaining is offered from the prosecution's side to rduce costs -- it's chaper to sentence someone for a lesser crime than it is to prosecute a case fully.

 

[alltherage]

Weak chases are often the reason people plead out. I suspect its a shell game the lawyers play and the defendent is the pea. I do agree that cost is an issue but I also believe it has to do with overcrowded courts, weak lawyers, and a general distain for poor clients.