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How does plea bargaining change the charges or sentence a defendant faces?
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Plea bargaining
A scene of the trials in Salem Village, Massachusetts Bay Colony, hand-colored engraving.
Plea bargaining is a legal process that allows defendants to limit the severity of their sanctions and gain certainty regarding their outcomes by pleading guilty instead of proceeding to trial. This process alters charges and sentences through three primary methods:
- Charge bargaining: The defendant agrees to plead guilty to a reduced charge, such as pleading to aggravated assault instead of attempted murder.1
- Sentence bargaining: The defendant receives assurances of a lighter or alternative sentence in exchange for a guilty plea. This can include avoiding the death penalty or receiving a sentence of "time served" for immediate release.1
- Count bargaining: For defendants facing multiple charges, the prosecutor may drop specific charges in exchange for a guilty plea on the remaining counts.1
Research indicates that defendants who plead guilty often receive significantly less-severe sentences than those who go to trial, with some estimates suggesting a potential reduction in sentence length by approximately two-thirds.1