[Rusty]

Originally Posted by ITD

Sometimes juries are a crap shoot, but that's not my point. There's a problem with a prosecutor who on the one hand will allow someone to plead for no jail only probation, then on the other hand pursues a charge with a mandatory 3 year minimum sentence. These are two extremely different punishments for the same crime. There is no rhyme nor reason here. Punishments should fit the crime, not the whim of a prosecutor.

Plea bargaining happens all the time. Wards case is not unusual at all and the prosecutor did exactly what falls within the law.


"A plea bargain (also plea agreement, plea deal or copping a plea) is an agreement in a criminal case whereby the prosecutor offers the defendant the opportunity to plead guilty, usually to a lesser charge or to the original criminal charge with a recommendation of a lighter than the maximum sentence. A plea bargain allows criminal defendants to avoid the risk of conviction at trial on the original more serious charge.

For example, a criminal defendant charged with a felony theft charge, the conviction of which would require imprisonment in state prison, may be offered the opportunity to plead guilty to a misdemeanor theft charge, which may not carry jail time."