Understanding Plea Bargain. A beginners guide.

In the realm of the Criminal Justice System, there is a term known as 'Plea Bargain' which simply means when an arrangement is made between the prosecutor and the defendant whereby the defendant pleads guilty to a lesser charge or come up with a different arrangement which practically makes the life of the prosecutor a little bit easier in exchange for a more lenient sentence or an agreement to drop other charges.

For example, when a person is charged on account of robbery or stealing, he or she then agrees to the return of the stolen property or goods, the prosecutor can then weigh the fact that the stolen goods to be returned and at the discretion of the prosecutor, the prosecutor then may drop the charges or offer a much lighter sentence. But more often than not the accused will still be tried for the charge placed him. The plea bargain was not meant to be an automatic 'out of jail pass'.

This is mainly due to the logic that, stolen goods returned or not a criminal act has already been committed and the return of the stolen goods does not negate the act done. After all, isn't it in the interest of Justice for a stolen property or goods to be returned back to the rightful owner?

The criminal justice system amongst many other functions serves as a deterrent tool for a menacing society. If for example an accused can simply walk free for the sole reason that he or she has already returned the stolen property or goods then the function of the criminal justice system as a tool of deterrence becomes incumbent. The accused who was released may then go ahead and commit the same crime or worse based on his previous experience of escaping sentence.

Further, I would like to offer an analogy. Can someone escape punishment just because they have returned back for example a stolen car? Absurd isn't it?

We also must take into consideration the fact that instead of battling a difficult case and risking not being able to establish the guilt of a Defendant, the prosecutor might adopt an approach whereby the prosecutor feels it might be better for me to get back half of the stolen goods or property than none. But again we must be reminded of the core principles of the criminal justice system that the law must apply without fear or favor and in the absolute interest of Justice.

This might or might not set a bad precedent and it is up to the course of law to decide on it. We shall wait and see.

Joel Ruben John

LLB (Hons) (London)

CLP

Advocate & Solicitor of the High Court of Malaya