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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
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Results for plea bargaining
14 results foundAuthor: Strom, Kevin J. Title: NIJ Controlled Substances Case Processing Study Summary: The processing and analysis of controlled substance evidence accounts for a significant proportion of the work performed by forensic crime laboratories. Crime laboratories are faced with ever-increasing caseloads and demands for prompt analytical information, and the impact of drug chemistry analysis on laboratory backlogs has been largely overlooked. RTI International was funded by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) to conduct the Controlled Substances Case Processing Study. The primary objectives of the study were to (1) gain an improved understanding of how controlled substances cases are processed, from the point of collection (law enforcement) through analysis (forensic laboratories) to subsequent criminal justice processes (prosecution), including factors that influence decision making at different stages in the process; (2) describe the role that controlled substances evidence plays in charging decisions by prosecutors, pretrial plea negotiations, and posttrial convictions; and (3) gather descriptive information from a range of U.S. jurisdictions that could be used to identify problems and develop systemic solutions to case backlogs and other inefficiencies in these forensic systems. Data were collected from a purposive sample of 10 jurisdictions, which represented a wide variation of different law enforcement and laboratory arrangements within state and local systems. Other selection criteria included jurisdiction size, rural or urban location, and differences in legal processes. Site visits to each of the selected jurisdictions were typically conducted over a 2-day period using semistructured interviews. Basic metrics associated with case processing statistics were also collected. Overall, a total of 38 agencies and 60 respondents were interviewed. The findings from this study demonstrate that jurisdictions vary considerably in terms of how they process and analyze controlled substance evidence. Laboratory drug analysis results were not often used (or required) as part of the charging process; in many jurisdictions the charging decisions were tied to the field test result and not to the presence of a confirmatory analysis result. In only one jurisdiction did the prosecutor require that the confirmatory analysis be conducted before the grand jury process (and before any plea negotiation discussions). However, although laboratory analysis was not required for plea negotiations in most sites, some still submitted all drug evidence directly to the laboratory regardless of whether it would ultimately be needed. In terms of barriers and challenges identified, from a laboratory perspective, there is an acute need for more uniform procedures and processes for submitting and analyzing drug evidence, including prioritization based on factors such as case seriousness. From a law enforcement perspective, the findings suggest that more systematic policies and resources need to be in place for evidence retention and storage. Improved communication was identified as an area of need by all the sites; however, some sites had more effective crossagency communication than others. A key for improving coordination was the presence of effective laboratory submission guidelines. In three jurisdictions, the implementation of a case submission policy was attributed to significant reductions in both the number of controlled substance cases pending analysis and the time to turn around cases. Case tracking systems that promote information sharing and monitoring across the different stages of the process were also highly effective. For example, a limited number of sites reported that prosecutors proactively provided information on cases resolved either by plea bargaining or dismissal — cases that, study participants estimated, represented 50–75% of the drug case “backlog.” Details: Research Triangle Park, NC: RTI International, 2010. 103p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 29, 2011 at: http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/233830.pdf Year: 2010 Country: United States URL: http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/233830.pdf Shelf Number: 121187 Keywords: Crime LaboratoriesDrug OffensesEvidenceForensicsPlea BargainingProsecutionProsecutorial Discretion |
Author: Carnegie, Jon A. Title: Study of the Effects of Plea Bargaining Motor Vehicle Offenses Summary: The objectives of this study were to examine the impact of plea bargaining point-carrying moving violations to zero-point offenses on roadway safety in New Jersey and to assess the impact of plea bargaining on New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) programs and revenues. For this study the research team conducted a national literature review and a scan of current practices used in other states; reviewed New Jersey laws and program guidance related to driver monitoring and control and plea bargaining motor vehicle offenses; conducted a series of interviews with personnel from the MVC and Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC); analyzed data from the AOC Automated Traffic System (ATS) and the MVC driver history database; and, assessed how the practice of plea bargaining may be affecting MVC programs and revenues. The study finds clear evidence that the practice of plea bargaining point-carrying moving violations to zero-point offenses has increased significantly in New Jersey since July 2000. However, the effect of this increase on highway safety is not as clear. The overall number of moving violation convictions has not changed significantly since 2000, nor has the nature of the violations being committed changed significantly. The study also finds evidence that a small minority of habitual offenders appear to be using the system to their advantage and that the number of drivers subjected to MVC negligent driver countermeasures has declined by 36 percent since 1999. This diversion of negligent drivers out of MVC driver monitoring and control programs appears to be particularly problematic in light of research findings from a recently completed study on recidivism among drivers sanctioned by MVC. That study found the countermeasures used by MVC to address negligent driving behavior are effective at reducing violation and crash recidivism among most negligent driver subgroups. The findings of this study combined with the findings and conclusions of the MVC recidivism study suggest a number of policy reforms should be considered to ensure that repeat traffic offenders are not able to circumvent driver monitoring and control programs through plea bargaining. First, MVC should work with the AOC, the Attorney General’s office and other key stakeholders to develop more explicit guidelines regarding the use of plea bargaining to reduce point-carrying moving violations to zero-point offenses. Second, MVC should examine the efficacy of transitioning from a point-based system of driver monitoring and control to an event-based system that relies on the accumulation of “countable” offenses to trigger negligent driver countermeasures. Thirdly, policy makers should consider amending the “unsafe operation” statute to limit the use of plea bargaining by any driver to two times. Details: New Brunswick, NJ: Alan M. Voorhees Transportation Center, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 2009. 56p. Source: FHWA-NJ-2009-018: Internet Resource: Accessed on January 29, 2012 at http://www.nj.gov/transportation/refdata/research/reports/FHWA-NJ-2009-018.pdf Year: 2009 Country: United States URL: http://www.nj.gov/transportation/refdata/research/reports/FHWA-NJ-2009-018.pdf Shelf Number: 123871 Keywords: Evaluative StudiesMotor Vehicle OffensesPlea Bargaining |
Author: Graham, Kyle Title: Crimes, Widgets, and Plea Bargaining: An Analysis of Charge Content, Pleas, and Trials Summary: This article considers how the composition and gravamen of a charged crime can affect the parties’ willingness and ability to engage in plea bargaining. Most of the prevailing descriptions of plea bargaining ignore or discount the importance of charge content in plea negotiations. In fact, one leading commentator has likened crimes to widgets insofar as plea bargaining is concerned. In developing its counter-thesis, this article reviews seven years of federal conviction data, focusing on those crimes that produce the most and fewest trials relative to how often they are alleged; the most and fewest acquittals at trial; and the most and fewest plea bargains that involve a substantial alteration in charges. Overall, the data demonstrate that the character of and circumstances that surround a particular offense can catalyze or frustrate plea bargaining. Similar information to that utilized in and gleaned from this study, it is also argued, can and should be considered in connection with the adoption of new crimes and the re-evaluation of existing offenses. This information would provide legislatures with insight into how a proposed crime is likely to be utilized, and how current crimes are being used. Details: Unpublished, 2012. 58p. California Law Review, Forthicoming. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 20, 2012 at http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2004194 Year: 0 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2004194 Shelf Number: 124611 Keywords: ConvictionsLegislationPlea BargainingProsecutorial DiscretionProsecutorsTrials |
Author: Pezdek, Kathy Title: A Preliminary Study of How Plea Bargaining Decisions by Prosecution and Defense Attorneys Are Affected by Eyewitness Factors Summary: This preliminary study attempted to assess how appraisals of the strength of eyewitness evidence affect plea bargaining decisions by prosecutors and defense attorneys. A sample of 93 defense attorneys and 46 prosecutors from matched counties in California participated. The attorneys had extensive experience practicing law and trying felony criminal cases in Superior Court. The attorneys were presented four scenarios in which two specific eyewitness factors – (a) same- versus cross-race identification and (b) prior contact or not – were experimentally manipulated in a factorial design. After reading each scenario, they were asked five questions regarding whether they would plea bargain the case, the lowest/highest plea bargain they would offer/accept, and their estimate of the probability that the defendant was guilty and the probability that they would win the case if it went to trial. This study attempted to experimentally assess how these typical decisions regarding plea bargaining are influenced by variations in the strength of two eyewitness factors, and the whether this pattern of results differs for prosecutors versus defense attorneys. Details: Claremont Graduate University, 2012. 46p. Source: Final Technical Report: Internet Resource: Accessed April 24, 2012 at https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/238136.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/238136.pdf Shelf Number: 125057 Keywords: Criminal EvidenceCriminal ProceedingsDefense AttorneysEyewitness IdentificationPlea BargainingProsecutors |
Author: Dervan, Lucian E. Title: The Innocent Defendant's Dilemma: An Innovative Empirical Study of Plea Bargaining's Innocence Problem Summary: In 1989, Ada JoAnn Taylor was accused of murder and presented with stark options. If she pleaded guilty, she would be rewarded with a sentence of ten to forty years in prison. If, however, she proceeded to trial and was convicted, she would likely spend the rest of her life behind bars. Over a thousand miles away in Florida and more than twenty years later, a college student was accused of cheating and presented with her own incentives to admit wrongdoing and save the university the time and expense of proceeding before a disciplinary review board. Both women decided the incentives were enticing and pleaded guilty. That Taylor and the college student both pleaded guilty is not the only similarity between the cases. Both were also innocent of the offenses for which they had been accused. After serving nineteen years in prison, Taylor was exonerated after DNA testing proved that neither she nor any of the other five defendants who pleaded guilty in her case were involved in the murder. As for the college student, her innocence is assured by the fact that, unbeknownst to her, she was actually part of an innovative new study into plea bargaining and innocence. The study, conducted by the authors, involving dozens of college students, and taking place over several months, not only recreated the innocent defendant’s dilemma experienced by Taylor, but revealed that plea bargaining’s innocence problem is not isolated to an obscure and rare set of cases. Strikingly, the authors’ study found that over half of the participants were willing to falsely admit guilt in return for a perceived benefit. This finding not only brings finality to the long-standing debate regarding the possible extent of plea bargaining’s innocence problem, but also ignites a fundamental constitutional question regarding an institution the Supreme Court reluctantly approved of in 1970 in return for an assurance it would not be used to induce innocent defendants to falsely admit guilt. Details: Rochester, NY: Social Science Research Network, 2012. 52p. Source: Working Paper: Internet Resource: Accessed June 19, 2012 at http://ssrn.com/abstract=2071397 Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2071397 Shelf Number: 125362 Keywords: Guilty PleasInnocencePlea Bargaining |
Author: New South Wales Law Reform Commission Title: Encouraging Appropriate Early Guilty Pleas: Models for Discussion Summary: This models paper presents approaches that other jurisdictions have taken to encourage early guilty pleas. The purpose of this paper is to stimulate discussion on what models (or combination of models) might or should be taken up and adapted to the NSW criminal justice system. The introduction to the paper provides background on the models paper. We highlight the obstacles that any reform would need to overcome and summarise the approaches or "models" of cognate jurisdictions that are detailed in the following chapters. Details: Sydney: NSW Law Reform Commission, 2013. 168p. Source: Internet Resource: Consultation Paper 15: Accessed August 6, 2014 at: http://www.lawreform.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/agdbasev7wr/_assets/lrc/m731654l13/cp15_2.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Australia URL: http://www.lawreform.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/agdbasev7wr/_assets/lrc/m731654l13/cp15_2.pdf Shelf Number: 132901 Keywords: Criminal Courts (Australia)Guilty PleasPlea Bargaining |
Author: Ringland, Clare Title: Predictors of guilty pleas in the NSW District Court Summary: Aim: To examine factors associated with early, late, and not guilty pleas in the District Court of NSW. Method: Data relating to NSW District Court matters between 2011 and 2013 were extracted from the Re-offending Database. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between demographic details, the number and type of offences, and previous experience with the criminal justice system, and whether a plea of not guilty or guilty was entered, and whether guilty pleas were entered 'early' or 'late'. Results: Overall, 55 per cent of defendants entered an early guilty plea, 28 per cent a late guilty plea and 17 per cent pleaded not guilty. A range of factors were associated with a defendant's plea. For example, with increasing age, defendants were more likely to plead not guilty, and those who did plead guilty were more likely to plead guilty late rather than early. In terms of offence type/s, defendants charged with aggravated sexual assault and serious assault resulting in injury were more likely to plead not guilty, and those who did plead guilty were more likely to plead guilty late rather than early. Defendants charged with robbery, break and enter, and illicit drug offences were more likely to plead guilty, and were more likely to plead guilty early. With increased time between the alleged offence and the committal date, defendants were more likely to plead not guilty and when a guilty plea was entered it was more likely to be entered late than early. While defendants with a prior conviction were more likely than those without a prior conviction to plead guilty than not guilty, they were more likely to enter a guilty plea late. Similarly, compared to those with no concurrent offences, those charged with more than one offence were more likely to plead guilty, and more likely to plead guilty late than early. Conclusion: Having a prior conviction and being charged with more than one offence were factors associated with an increased likelihood of a late guilty plea and a decreased likelihood of a not guilty plea. Targeting cases with these characteristics may help to increase the rate of early guilty pleas. Details: Sydney: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, 2014. 8p. Source: Internet Resource: Issue Paper no. 96: Accessed September 23, 2014 at: http://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/agdbasev7wr/_assets/bocsar/m716854l4/bb96.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Australia URL: http://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/agdbasev7wr/_assets/bocsar/m716854l4/bb96.pdf Shelf Number: 133396 Keywords: Criminal Courts (Australia) Guilty PleasPlea Bargaining |
Author: Slobogin, Christopher Title: Plea Bargaining and the Substantive and Procedural Goals of Criminal Justice: From Retribution and Adversarialism to Preventive Justice and Hybrid-Inquisitorialism Summary: Plea bargaining and guilty pleas are intrinsically incompatible with the most commonly-accepted premises of American criminal justice - to wit, retributivism and adversarialism. This article argues that the only way to align plea bargaining with the substantive and procedural premises of American criminal justice is to change those premises. It imagines a system where retribution is no longer the lodestar of criminal punishment, and where party-control of the process is no longer the desideratum of adjudication. If, instead, plea bargaining were seen as a mechanism for implementing a sentencing regime focused primarily on individual crime prevention rather than retribution (as in the salad days of indeterminate sentencing), and if it were filtered through a system that is inquisitorial (i.e., judicially-monitored) rather than run by the adversaries, it would have a much greater chance of evolving into a procedurally coherent mechanism for achieving substantively accurate results. Details: Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University - Law School, 2014. 36p. Source: Internet Resource: Vanderbilt Public Law Research Paper No. 15-4 : Accessed April 2, 2015 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2583898 Year: 2014 Country: United States URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2583898 Shelf Number: 135141 Keywords: Plea BargainingPunishmentRetributionSentencing |
Author: Victoria (Australia). Sentencing Advisory Council Title: Guilty pleas in the higher courts: rates, timing, and discounts Summary: This report examines the rate and timing of guilty pleas, and their effect on sentence, in the Supreme Court of Victoria and the County Court of Victoria ('the higher courts') from July 2009 to June 2014. The study includes a total of 9,618 cases and 35,902 charges sentenced in the higher courts during the reference period (2009-10 to 2013-14). Since 2008, section 6AAA of the Victorian Sentencing Act 1991 has required sentencing judges (in certain circumstances) to state the sentence that they would have imposed if the offender had not pleaded guilty. Subtracting the actual sentence from this notional undiscounted sentence reveals the stated reduction in sentence, or 'discount' for the guilty plea. As well as making the discounts more transparent to the parties in the case, the very high compliance with section 6AAA in the higher courts has enabled extensive data collection on plea-based sentence discounts for the first time in Victoria. During the reference period (2009-10 to 2013-14), there were over 7,000 higher court cases with sufficient detail in the 6AAA statement to analyse the reductions awarded for guilty pleas. A unique feature of these data is that the information about the plea-based reduction is sourced directly from the sentencing judges. Details: Melbourne: Victorian Sentencing Advisory Council, 2015. 106p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 13, 2015 at: https://www.sentencingcouncil.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/publication-documents/Guilty%20Pleas%20in%20the%20Higher%20Courts_2.pdf Year: 2015 Country: Australia URL: https://www.sentencingcouncil.vic.gov.au/sites/default/files/publication-documents/Guilty%20Pleas%20in%20the%20Higher%20Courts_2.pdf Shelf Number: 136387 Keywords: Criminal CourtsGuilty PleasJudgesPlea BargainingSentencing |
Author: Sangero, Boaz Title: Safety from False Convictions Summary: This book provides readers with an exploration of ways to reduce the rate of false convictions in the criminal justice system. The criminal justice system should be seen as a Safety-Critical System, specifically a system that deals with matters of life and death, where any error is likely to cause grave harm to both the individual and society. Implementing safety in criminal law is necessary, both morally and economically. Incorporating into the criminal justice system a modern safety theory that is commonly accepted in other areas, such as space, aviation, engineering, and transportation, is an idea that was developed jointly by myself and Dr. Mordechai Halpert and presented mainly in the coauthored article "A Safety Doctrine for the Criminal Justice System." This is the starting point of the book. The book expands the preliminary proposition and engages in the application of the modern safety theory and methods in the criminal justice system. Thus, for example, the book demonstrates how the fundamentally important Identify-Analyze-Control method can and should be implemented in the system, using Nancy Leveson's STAMP's model ("System-Theoretic Accident Model and Processes"). This is the first book that proposes a general theory of safety for the criminal justice system. It provides specific safety rules for certain types of criminal evidence and criminal law procedures. Details: Ramat Gan, Israel: The Author, 2016. 256p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 29, 2016 at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2816292 Year: 2016 Country: International URL: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2816292 Shelf Number: 140077 Keywords: Criminal LawEyewitness TestimonyFalse ConvictionsInnocencePlea BargainingWrongful Conviction |
Author: Flynn, Asher Title: Plea negotiations Summary: Research Aims This report provides an empirical account of current plea negotiation practices in the state of Victoria, including documenting the frequency of plea negotiations, identifying the different forms of plea negotiation and common resolution outcomes, and discussing the processes involved in reaching an agreement. The study involved the development of a dataset of negotiated guilty pleas through a comprehensive mixed qualitative and quantitative analysis of Victoria Legal Aid (VLA) deidentified case files that had resolved by guilty pleas; conducting qualitative, in-depth interviews with police prosecutors, Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP) solicitors, Crown prosecutors, defence practitioners (VLA employees and those in private practice) and judicial officers; as well as carrying out consultations with key legal stakeholders. Results This study found that between 87 and 100 per cent of guilty pleas entered at all levels of the Victorian courts are the result of a negotiated agreement between the prosecutor and the defence. It identified 14 forms of plea negotiation across the interview and de-identified case file datasets, and found that it was not uncommon for several forms to be used in the one case. The most common forms of plea negotiation in Victoria include: (1) withdrawing and substituting charges, (2) rolled-up charges and representative counts, (3) negotiating an agreed summary of facts, and (4) agreements on the prosecution's sentencing submission. The mean number of charges withdrawn in each case within the dataset was 3.24. Prior to a resolution there were 6.42 charges per case and post a resolution, the mean number of charges an accused pleaded guilty to was 3.18. The most common offenses negotiated were those where there are multiple alternative charges available (such as intentionally or recklessly causing serious injury and intentionally or recklessly causing injury), gross violence offenses, aggravated burglary and assaults. This was partly due to police charging offenders with multiple offenses covering the same course of conduct (sometimes referred to as overcharging), which provided a basis for negotiating the withdrawal of these charges. Armed robbery and drug offenses were also common subjects of negotiation. Offenses least likely to be negotiated were sexual offenses, homicides and family violence matters. This study found that the negotiation process is often quite extensive, with multiple interactions taking place between the parties before an agreement is reached. The negotiations occurred by phone, email/letter and face to face, with the most common communication method for negotiations being email (74 per cent of de-identified case files). Across the de-identified case file dataset, all guilty pleas were entered prior to trial, with the majority entered prior to the committal hearing (81 per cent). Four key considerations framed the plea negotiation process: (1) the strength of the evidence, (2) the public interest (for prosecutors), (3) the personalities of the opposing party, and (4) the client's interests (for defense practitioners). Defense practitioners initiated almost all the discussions (91 per cent), although it is becoming more common for prosecutors in both the summary and indictable streams to commence discussions - a practice encouraged by the main guidelines governing prosecutorial conduct in plea negotiations in Victoria. 1 There are various levels of internal authorizing and accountability mechanism operating within the OPP and Victoria Police in relation to accepting a guilty plea to lesser charges, suggesting that, while plea negotiations are not officially recognised in legislation, they constitute a widely accepted criminal justice procedure that forms part of a litigious process. This study found that a strong early resolution culture permeates the courts, VLA, Victoria Police and the OPP, which may, in part, contribute to the high rate of guilty pleas entered in Victoria each year. Indeed, there has been a noticeable shift in all facets of the legal process in Victoria (as evident elsewhere in Australia) towards a commitment to early resolution, where appropriate. There are significant differences in the way in which plea negotiations are conducted in the summary jurisdiction, compared to the manner in which indictable cases are handled. This is partly due to the nature of the offenses heard in the summary stream, the fast pace of the Magistrates' Court compared to the higher courts, and the different approaches defense practitioners adopt when dealing with police prosecutors as opposed to when they are negotiating with OPP solicitors and Crown prosecutors. This study found that the early resolution-focused pre-contest hearings that operate in the Magistrates' Court (the summary case conference and the contest mention) strongly facilitate plea negotiations at an early stage of the process. However, the success of the contest mention is highly dependent on the magistrate involved, which can lead to inconsistencies in the effectiveness of this hearing. The research also identified some limitations in the out-of-court summary case conference process which arise from the lack of resourcing, the high workloads of police prosecutors, and the absence of specific funding for VLA practitioners to prepare and engage in summary case conference work. These limitations hinder the effectiveness of what could be a highly successful early resolution-focused process. The study revealed a number of adverse effects of the reductions in funding and tightening of eligibility criteria for VLA service provision. In relation to plea negotiations, in particular, it was found that changes to funding structures have resulted in an increase in self-represented accused persons. This has negatively affected the outcome and timeliness of negotiations, and the role of the magistrate and the police prosecutor (who are inappropriately being forced to become quasi-defense practitioners), and created more delays in the system overall. The research also found that unrepresented accused persons were at a disadvantage in attempting to negotiate with police prosecutors, and at greater risk of succumbing to pressures to make agreements without fully understanding the implications of their guilty plea. This was of particular concern in relation to offenders with a mental impairment. The findings indicated that the proportion of accused persons with a mental illness appearing before the courts was very high. Evidence of mental illness was presented in 60 per cent of the de-identified case files, and the interview data suggested that the rates are even higher. In addition to shedding light on the plea negotiation process, the study found that the sentence indication process is operating very effectively in the Magistrates' Court. However, its usefulness is minimal in the higher courts because it is limited to an indication of whether a custodial or non-custodial sanction might be imposed, but not its possible length. There is also a perception among defense practitioners that it is constrained by the requirement of prosecutorial approval. It was identified that, in general, the requirement on the court to specify the sentence it would have imposed, but for a guilty plea being entered under Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic) s 6AAA, ostensibly functions as a means of demonstrating the discount the accused has received for their guilty plea - but this requirement has not been well received by the legal community. While most participants found the statement to be artificial and unrealistic, there may be some significant benefits for the accused in having the sentence discount articulated that may justify its retention. This study revealed that the High Court's decision in Barbaro v The Queen; Zirilli v The Queen , which prohibited prosecutors from providing a sentencing range to the court as part of their sentencing submission, has changed, but not removed sentence negotiations from the process. While the High Court's decision has appeared to halt negotiations on the numerical range of the prison sentence that the prosecutor may submit to the court, negotiations still occur in relation to the prosecutor's sentencing submission about the amount of time already served in custody that should be taken into account by the sentencing judge, the appropriateness of a Community Correction Order (CCO) or its combination with a sentence of imprisonment. Finally, this study identified that the introduction of presumptive and mandatory sentencing regimes (such as the mandatory four-year minimum for gross violence offenses) affects plea negotiations by putting pressure on accused persons to accept an agreement to plead guilty to a lesser offense that does not carry a mandatory penalty, even where there may be a strong case that the accused is not guilty of that lesser offense. These regimes also sometimes place pressure on prosecutors to negotiate a plea of guilty to an offense that does not carry a mandatory sentence, in order to avoid going to trial. Details: Canberra: Criminology Research Advisory Council, 2018. 186p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 30, 2018 at: http://crg.aic.gov.au/reports/1718/51-1314-FinalReport.pdf Year: 2018 Country: Australia URL: http://crg.aic.gov.au/reports/1718/51-1314-FinalReport.pdf Shelf Number: 149970 Keywords: Guilty PleasPlea Bargaining |
Author: Gollwitzer, Anton Title: The Role of Age in Plea Bargain Decision Making Summary: Research has elucidated that defendants in criminal cases behave differently depending on their age. How age specifically affects plea bargain behavior, however, has only been sparsely investigated. In four studies, we observed that age influences whether lay individuals' plea bargain decision making is concordant (i.e., accept plea bargains if guilty and opt for trial if innocent) or discordant (i.e., accept a plea bargain if innocent and opt for a trial if guilty) in 'mock' criminal scenarios. In line with emerging adults' (18-28 years old) increased just-world beliefs and illusions of transparency, Study 1 provided indirect evidence that emerging adults' plea bargain decision making is more concordant than mature adults (29-40). Study 2, however, found that this effect is dependent on the defendant's likelihood of conviction. Studies 3 and 4 emulated Studies 1 and 2, however, they examined how parents of differently aged children advise their children regarding plea bargains decision making. Parents of younger children (8-11 years old) advised their child similarly to how they themselves would act. Parents of adolescents (12-18), on the other hand, adopted an entirely concordant approach, advising their adolescent child to behave according to their child's culpability. Overall, we find that individuals' approach to plea bargain decision making depends on their age group (or the age group of their children), culpability, and probability of conviction. Details: New haven, CT: Yale University, School of Law, 2018. 44p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 8, 2018 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3149960 Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3149960 Shelf Number: 150111 Keywords: Criminal CourtCriminal TrialsDecision-MakingPlea Bargaining |
Author: Landeo, Claudia M. Title: Ordered Leniency: An Experimental Study of Law Enforcement with Self-Reporting Summary: This paper reports the results of an experiment designed to assess the ability of an enforcement agency to detect and deter harmful short-term activities committed by groups of injurers. With ordered-leniency policies, early cooperators receive reduced sanctions. We replicate the strategic environment described by Landeo and Spier (2018). In theory, the optimal ordered-leniency policy depends on the refinement criterion applied in case of multiplicity of equilibria. Our findings are as follows. First, we provide empirical evidence of a "race-to-the-courthouse" effect of ordered leniency: Mild and Strong Leniency induce the injurers to self-report promptly. These findings suggest that the injurers' behaviors are aligned with the risk-dominance refinement. Second, Mild and Strong Leniency significantly increase the likelihood of detection of harmful activities. This fundamental finding is explained by the high self-reporting rates under ordered-leniency policies. Third, as a result of the increase in the detection rates, the averages fines are significantly higher under Mild and Strong Leniency. As expected when the risk-dominance refinement is applied, Mild Leniency exhibits the highest average fine. Details: Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2018. 54p. Source: Internet Resource: NBER Working Paper 25094: Accessed October 4, 2018 at: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3250945 Year: 2018 Country: United States URL: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3250945 Shelf Number: 152833 Keywords: Corporate Misconduct Law Enforcement Leniency Ordered Leniency Plea BargainingWhite-Collar Crime |
Author: Florida. Legislature. Office of Program Policy Analysis & Government Accountability Title: Diverting Low-Risk Offenders from Florida Prisons Summary: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In 2018, Florida had 143 prison facilities, including 50 major institutions housing 96,253 inmates. Florida's inmate population is the third largest state prison population in the United States. The Florida Department of Corrections' total budget for Fiscal Year 2017-18 was $2.4 billion, with the estimated cost to house an inmate at $59.57 per day, or $21,743 annually. Over the past 8 years, both admissions to prison and prison population have decreased. However, Florida continues to have the 10th highest incarceration rate in the United States at 500 per 100,000. There are multiple points at which offenders can be diverted from the path between arrest and prison, and Florida currently uses many of these diversion programs. Diversion programs include pretrial intervention, plea bargaining, problem-solving courts, and probation. Probation and plea bargaining are the most utilized types of diversion in Florida. Our analysis finds that there are additional lowerrisk offenders who could be diverted from prison, which could likely result in reduced recidivism and long-term cost savings. As such, the Legislature may want to consider various options for diverting additional offenders from prison. This review answers five questions: - How are offenders sentenced in Florida? - What factors influence Floridas incarceration rate? - How does prison diversion occur in Florida? - Are there low-risk offenders who could be diverted from prison? - What options exist for diverting low-risk offenders from prison? Details: Tallahassee. Florida: The Florida Legislature, Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability, 2019. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 3, 2019 at: http://www.oppaga.state.fl.us/summary.aspx?reportnum=19-01 Year: 2019 Country: United States URL: http://www.oppaga.state.fl.us/MonitorDocs/Reports/pdf/1901rpt.pdf Shelf Number: 154754 Keywords: Incarceration RateLow-Risk OffendersOffenderPlea BargainingPrisonProbation |