Bill of Rights, Due Process Protections and Administration

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1. How do you feel about Plea Bargaining and Guilty Pleas?

Plea Bargaining and guilty pleas are intertwined within the current dichotomy of the criminal justice system. Unfortunately, many innocent people are convicted for offenses they did not commit because of plea bargaining serving as over 90% of the current disposition of criminal cases. When plea bargaining is used to prevent traumatization of victims by not having to relive the experience of their victimization because of a trial, this is a good usage of the tool.

The current use focuses on prosecutors who use plea bargaining as a tool of destruction wherein they threaten defendants with longer terms in prison if they choose to go to trial, and the caveat is that in many of these cases the prosecutor has a lack of evidence to convict the defendant, but uses the threat as an enhancer for plea bargaining. The defense attorneys appointed by the courts are also a detrimental part of the current plea bargaining deal because they have a lack of resources to effectively fight for their clients. Therefore, the current system has a two-pronged approach that attempts to jettison cases through the system at the fastest rate possible regardless of the impact on the defendants. This impact is typically negative.

2. Search and arrests without warrant?

The Fourth Amendment of the Constitution provides protections against unlawful searches and seizures. This is supposed to be thrown out once a court of law hears the case, but many cases result in defendants who lack proper defense attorneys that cannot challenge the efficacy of the search and seizures. Due process is paramount for the criminal justice system, and without it, the system is not able to claim justice and equality.

3. Tracing the progress of a criminal case?

This is a science that is predicated upon following the trial from arrest until trial. After a defendant is arrested for a crime, those concerned with ensuring that social justice is at the forefront of the criminal justice system can focus on whether the arrest was justified. After the defendant is detained, the social justice activists can then focus on the detention of the defendant to ensure that the suspect was not denied their right to a speedy trial, abused while in custody, nor unjustly denied bail. The trial phase offers another chance to vet ...