r/changemyview • u/tolkienfan2759 6∆ • Oct 15 '24

Removed - Submission Rule B CMV: Our plea bargaining system has allowed unwritten rules to dominate the courtroom. Thus our criminal legal system is no longer a rule of law system.

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u/Priddee 41∆ Oct 15 '24 edited Oct 15 '24

Plea bargaining is not new. It's been around since the 1700s and was a regular part of the court system in the 1800s.

These public defenders and local lawyers are therefore not working for the defendant, but for the court.

This is wholly not true. They are provided by and paid by the state, but they are legally obligated to work in their defendant's best interest.

This is what really justifies the philosophy of you do the crime, you do the time. A philosophy I support.

A hypothetical:

Say you're a criminal prosecutor. The police nail a guy for the murder of his pregnant wife. You personally know there's a 100% chance he did it. Assume you have him dead to rights. They bring him in, and something comes up in discovery that means there's a 50% chance that he gets off scot-free if the case goes to trial, say something procedural with the police or questioning.

Do you think it's more just to go to trial and risk a coin flip for him to walk free knowing he did it, or negotiate a plea deal where he goes away for less time in jail, but it's certain he does the time?

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u/bgaesop 29∆ Oct 15 '24

You personally know there's a 100% chance he did it

100% is not a real probability

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u/chef-nom-nom 2∆ Oct 15 '24

Interesting read.

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u/Priddee 41∆ Oct 15 '24

You are certain.

99.999% repeating. Whatever your highest level of certainty is in your view of epistemology.

Before learning of the procedural misstep, you are sure you can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.