Plea Deals: Systematically taking Advantage of the Impoverished and Uneducated
In the documentary from class, we see the criminal court set its poor and uneducated defendants up to fail under plea deals. With an overworked public defender unable to give them a clear idea of what a plea deal would truly entail, many Americans agree to pleas without realizing what they're agreeing to. Impoverished defendants would never agree to plead out in exchange for probation if anyone had made it clear to them how expensive probation would be. Many argue that without plea deals the system would collapse. This may be true, but that doesn't give the government a right to keep the system running by taking advantage of the least fortunate of society. I'm not arguing that plea deals should be abolished, but rather put in layman's terms for the less educated and more vulnerable. People have a right to know what's happening to them in the courtroom and what their various legal paths are. I believe that a step in the right direction would be having defendants verbally say that they understand what their plea deal entails after the judge has clearly explained that they cannot undo this and what exactly probation would entail. I also think that when defendants have to say they're pleading guilty for no reason other than that they're guilty, the judge should make them aware that this means despite what happens at trial or under further investigation, any defendants who plead out will still be charged. You should not have to have money and education to avoid legal punishment for something you did not do.
I agree with your idea of having an option for people to-ay that they do not understand their rights because it was pretty obvious that a lot of them did not understand what they were agreeing to and it led to serious repercussions. I think that the fact that the outcome of a trial is so linked to economic success is an issue that should try to be solved. If someone cannot afford a good lawyer and ends up in prison once they are released it ruins their lives tot he point where they cannot evens support their families.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very good point in the sense that a big part of making this problem into something that would provide a more equal advantage to the less fortunate is making their understanding the first priority. By having defendants verbally say that they understand what their plea deal entails after the judge has clearly explained that they cannot undo this and what exactly probation would entail, it would make the system more trustworthy and less of a failure, because then the defendants would know exactly or roughly what their future looks like in terms of the choices being made in court. Half of the time defendants are blind to the reality behind what they initially agree to when put on the spot by the judge and can no longer go back and change their decisions, which is why in the long run they get stuck in unjust situations like not being able to pay their probation fees due to the low income household they come from, etc.
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ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with this as majority of people either don't fully understand the legal system, or don't know anything about it at all, which can create massive problems in terms of plea deals. I think that your suggestion about the judge clarifying with the defendant is definitely a good solution as your economic status should not mean that you are at a disadvantage in comparison with other defendants. Another solution could be getting free legal advice simply on how you plead, as this should be guaranteed for anyone regardless of how economically successful you are. This should be more than just a public defender that doesn't give a clear answer, there should be a system in place to guarantee that the defendant understands what a plea deal is and that they know how to proceed when the judge asks.
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