plea-bargain
Negotiate lesser charges
A plea-bargain is an agreement in a criminal case where the defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge or accepts a reduced sentence in exchange for avoiding trial.
Prosecutors offer plea-bargains to secure convictions efficiently; defendants accept them to limit potential punishment.
The vast majority of criminal cases in the United States resolve through plea-bargains rather than trials: His lawyer negotiated a plea-bargain that dropped the felony to a misdemeanor.
Government's trial lawyer
- defendantParty facing charges
- dealAgreement or distribution
- offerProposal to provide
- agreementShared position between parties
concession · trade-off · quid pro quo · leverage · discussion · terms · conditions · counter-offer
Charge-reading court session
- indictmentFormal charge from jury
- docketCourt's case schedule
- counselExpert guidance offered
- defense attorneyLawyer representing the accused
district attorney · judge · hearing · courtroom · charges · felony · misdemeanor · motion
Entry or confession
- confessionAdmission of wrongdoing
- allocutionFormal speech, especially pre-sentencing
- culpabilityDeserving blame for wrongdoing
- responsibilityState of being answerable
no contest · acceptance · acknowledgment · waiver of rights · self-incrimination · remorse · contrition
Productive without waste
- expediencyPrioritizing practicality over ethics
- caseloadProfessional's assigned matters
- backlogAccumulated unfinished work
- overcrowdingCapacity exceeded dangerously
resources · conviction rate · certainty · closure · fairness · coercion · innocence · wrongful conviction
Making something smaller
- leniencyMildness in punishment
- probationSupervised trial period
- jail timePeriod of imprisonment
- prisonConfinement for offenders
fine · community service · mitigation · recommendation · guidelines · mandatory minimum · suspended sentence · time served
prosecutor
Government's trial lawyer
agreement · concession · trade-off · quid pro quo · leverage · discussion · terms · conditions · counter-offer · incentive
arraignment
Charge-reading court session
- indictmentFormal charge from jury
- docketCourt's case schedule
- counselExpert guidance offered
defense attorney · district attorney · judge · hearing · courtroom · charges · felony · misdemeanor · motion · filing
admission
Entry or confession
- confessionAdmission of wrongdoing
- allocutionFormal speech, especially pre-sentencing
- culpabilityDeserving blame for wrongdoing
responsibility · no contest · acceptance · acknowledgment · waiver of rights · self-incrimination · remorse · contrition
efficiency
Productive without waste
- expediencyPrioritizing practicality over ethics
- caseloadProfessional's assigned matters
- backlogAccumulated unfinished work
overcrowding · resources · conviction rate · certainty · closure · fairness · coercion · innocence · wrongful conviction · reform
reduction
Making something smaller
prison · fine · community service · mitigation · recommendation · guidelines · mandatory minimum · suspended sentence · time served · incarceration
plea-bargainjury trial
Legal proceeding with citizen panel
trial by jury · bench trial · trial · litigation · trial verdict
please, bargain, plead, plea, barge, bargaining, pleading, bargains, pleads