State prosecutors in America boast a conviction rate of over 90%. Unforunately, most of these convictions are the result of plea bargains. In Dade County, Florida for instance, over 97 percent of criminal cases were resolved through plea-bargains (Miami Herald (10/20/85).
Plea bargains undermine our criminal justice system. Rather than build a case and take it to trial, prosecuters all too often settle for a guilty plea on a lesser charge. A first degree murder case gets plea bargained down to voluntary manslaughter case. A violent criminal facing life in prison walks away instead with a few months in jail.
Compounding matters is the way our courts sentence criminals. Sentences such as "10 to 20 years" or "10 years to life" are often meaningless. "Good time" credits allow convicts to receive two days off their maximum sentence for every day served. In addition, convicts are usually eligible for parole after serving only one third of their minimum sentence. A "10 to 20 year" sentence thus means that you are eligible for parole in 3 and a half years and that your maximum sentence is 7 and a half years.
Convicts released early on parole are supposed to be carefully monitored and reincarcerated for any parole violations. In practice, however, the only way for someone on parole to be put back in jail is to be convicted of another serious offense. A Bureau of Justice Statistics study found that 60% of violent offenders were rearrested for serious offenses within three years of being released from prison. In New York City alone, there are 13,000 convicted killers out on parole on any given day.
Many groups in recent years have been pushing for "Truth-in-Sentencing" legislation which would require convicts to serve at least 85% of their sentences before being elgible for parole.
Reforms need to be made that will guarentee that the public's safety is given top priority. Plea bargains should be used only when necessary, prison sentences should be truthful, and judges and parole boards should be held accountable for letting dangerous individuals back on the street.
