Every crime in California is defined by a specific code section. Our attorneys explain the law, penalties and best defense strategies for every major crime in California.
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Every crime in California is defined by a specific code section. Our attorneys explain the law, penalties and best defense strategies for every major crime in California.
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DUI arrests don't always lead to convictions in court. Police officer mistakes, faulty breathalyzers and crime lab errors may get your charges reduced or dismissed. Visit our California DUI page to learn more.
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A criminal record can affect job, immigration, licensing and even housing opportunities. In this section, we offer solutions for clearing up your prior record.
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The plea bargain process is a negotiation between the prosecutor, on one side, and the defendant and his or her criminal defense lawyer, on the other.
The goal is to come to a mutually-agreeable resolution without taking the case to a trial the outcome of which is uncertain to both sides. Most criminal cases are resolved through a plea deal.
The plea bargain process is a negotiation between the prosecution and the defense. The prosecutor tries to secure a criminal conviction that carries the harshest punishment possible without a trial. The criminal defense attorney tries to secure the outcome most favorable to his or her client. The criminal trial serves as a deadline for the negotiation.
Just like with any negotiation, the plea bargain process is a series of offers and counteroffers. How much ground each side is willing to give up will be driven by the strength of the prosecutor’s case against the defendant.
These negotiations can be formal or informal. They may happen
They may happen
They can last a long time or be settled very quickly. Some plea bargain negotiations take until the eve of the jury trial. Others begin and end in under an hour, sometimes without a single court appearance.
Unrepresented defendants are unlikely to get a plea offer that varies much from the original charge. Hiring a lawyer from a reputable law firm is critical, especially for defendants who are facing serious charges or have been accused of a sex crime.
If both sides come to an agreement, it will create a plea deal. This is a binding agreement. The defendant agrees to plead guilty in exchange for concessions from law enforcement. Those concessions can include:
The case will then skip forward several steps in the criminal justice system.
At the sentencing hearing, the judge will make sure that the defendant understands his or her constitutional rights and the implications of the plea agreement. If the judge is satisfied that the defendant is entering the agreement knowingly and voluntarily, he or she will usually approve the deal. The terms of the agreement will then be imposed and the defendant will serve the sentence.
Generally, there are 4 different types of plea bargains:
However, some defendants choose to plead “straight up” to the charges that have been filed.
A criminal defense lawyer will know which type or types to pursue based on the defendant’s case and his or her interests.
Defendants can engage in count bargaining if they are facing multiple criminal counts or charges. Count bargaining involves offering to plead guilty to one or more of the counts in order to have others dropped.
For example: Claire is being charged with one count of trespassing and one count of loitering. She offers to plead guilty to the trespassing charge if the loitering offense gets dropped.
Sentence bargaining focuses the plea negotiations on the terms of the sentence. The defendant can offer to plead guilty to the charges that have been filed, if the prosecutor urges the court to impose a specific set of sanctions or a reduced sentence. This is common in cases where the defendant wants to avoid jail time and is willing to accept other penalties in high amounts, like fines or community service, in order to do so. It is also common for low-level offenses and misdemeanors that are eligible for diversion.
For example: Mike is charged with a first offense of driving under the influence (DUI). He offers to plead guilty in exchange for being sentenced to a diversion program.
Defendants can also bargain over the charges being filed. They generally do this by offering to plead guilty to a lesser charge. This is especially common when the offense is a low-level felony or a wobbler. Felony convictions carry lots of collateral consequences that are not present for a misdemeanor offense. By agreeing to plead guilty to a misdemeanor, defendants can avoid the potential for those repercussions that come with having a felony on his or her criminal record.
For example: Dale is charged with a domestic violence offense of aggravated felony trespassing. This is a wobbler. He offers to plead guilty, so long as the charge is dropped to the lesser offense of aggravated trespassing, which is a misdemeanor.
In fact bargaining, defendants generally plead no contest, or nolo contendere, in order to prevent the facts of the case from being investigated and released. No contest pleas have the same effect as a guilty plea. The defendant is simply saying that he or she will not fight against the charge, but without admitting guilt. The sentence to be imposed will remain the same – prosecutors will generally not reduce it during fact bargaining.
Fact bargaining is often done by criminal defendants who want to preserve their reputation or to prepare for a civil case for compensation.
In some jurisdictions, the criminal law does not allow for no contest pleas.1 In others, like California, it is an admission of guilt if made to a felony charge.2
For example: Brittany is charged with DUI causing injury after causing a car accident that seriously injured Tim. Brittany knows that the DUI investigation is going to uncover damning evidence against her. She also knows that Tim will likely file a personal injury claim against her for causing his injuries. Brittany decides to engage in fact bargaining and plead no contest in order to avoid an admission of guilt.
Plea bargaining can begin as early as the arraignment. Deals can be struck at any point up to the jury’s verdict. Many plea deals are made during the preliminary hearing. By the time this hearing comes up, both the prosecutor and the defense lawyer have had time to investigate and will have a solid understanding of the case.
Courts and judges encourage plea deal negotiations, often aggressively. Trials are time-consuming, and courts are backlogged. Resolving as many criminal cases as possible through the plea deal process is essential to the criminal court system.
Once defendants enter a plea of guilty or no contest, it is very difficult to convince the court to allow them to withdraw the plea. Regretting the terms of the deal does not suffice. They generally have to show that they did not enter the deal knowingly or voluntarily in order to get it rescinded.
A former Los Angeles prosecutor, attorney Neil Shouse graduated with honors from UC Berkeley and Harvard Law School (and completed additional graduate studies at MIT). He has been featured on CNN, Good Morning America, Dr Phil, The Today Show and Court TV. Mr Shouse has been recognized by the National Trial Lawyers as one of the Top 100 Criminal and Top 100 Civil Attorneys.