a) Should plea bargaining be allowed?  Do you think plea bargaining offers greater advantages to the prosecutor or the defendant?  Explain the reasons for your answer.

b.  Do you think anyone accused of a crime would plead guilty if he or she were really innocent?  Explain your answer.

c.  Consider the following scenario:  Marty, who is 22 years old, is arrested and charged with burglarizing a warehouse.  He has a criminal record, including a previous conviction for shoplifting and two arrests for auto theft.  The prosecutor has evidence placing him at the scene of the crime but no other physical evidence linking him to the crime.  Because of his record, if Marty is convicted, he could face up to 10 years in prison.  Marty's defense attorney tells him that the prosecutor will reduce the charge to petty larceny, carrying a one year suspended sentence and community service, in exchange for a guilty plea. 

If you were Marty, would you plead guilty to the lesser charge?  Why or why not?  Give reasons for your answer.

d. The governor of a large state is charged with corruption by federal prosecutors.  The case attracts widespread media attention.  This is a first offense for the governor, who had previously been the attorney general of her state.  Her defense lawyer meets with the prosecutors seeking a plea agreement.  The defense wants either a reduced charge (a misdemeanor), the promise of a sentence that does not require jail time (probation), or both, in exchange for a guilty plea. 

As a prosecutor, what factors would you consider in making your decision?  Explain the reasons for your answer.

a) I think that the plea bargaining system should be significantly reformed. Plea bargains are dangerous whether the defendant is guilty or innocent: the guilty are given lesser punishments than they deserve, and the innocent are essentially denied their right to a trial through enticements. Pleas may occasionally benefit guilty defendants, but they exist primarily to benefit prosecutors by reducing their workload and securing them high conviction rates without requiring them to prove cases. A possible reform would be to only allow plea bargains that minimally reduce sentencing, since there would be less incentive for innocent people to plea and less lenient sentences for the guilty.

b) Yes, innocent people frequently plea guilty, for a number of reasons. Many do not have the financial resources to mount an effective defense. Others are nearly coerced into doing so, sometimes by prosecutors and sometimes by their own defense attorneys.

c) If I were Marty, I would probably take the plea bargain, even if I were totally innocent. Being placed at the scene of a crime is a strong piece of evidence, even if it is the only one. In addition, if the prosecution is allowed to point to Marty's criminal record during the trial, the jury will be more likely to find him guilty. The difference between a 10 year sentence and a one-year suspended sentence with community service is too great to gamble on.

d) This example highlights a problem with the plea bargaining system: prosecutors are more likely to bring cases to trial that capture media attention and thereby help their careers. If I were the prosecutor on this case, I would hope that I would not be swayed by this factor in deciding whether to make a plea bargain. Instead, the biggest factor in my decision would be the strength of my case against the governor. If I felt that I had a rock-solid case, I would not make a plea bargain, but if my evidence was shaky, I might consider the bargain.