Chapter 8: pretrial procedure: plea bargaining

Question 1

going rate

Answer 1

the sentence usually imposed for a given crime

Question 2

flat time

Answer 2

actual amount of time required to be served by a convicted offender while incarcerated

Question 3

nolle prosequi

Answer 3

Decline to prosecute

Question 4

guilty plea

Answer 4

a defendant claiming that they are guilty in court, charges contained in complaint, information, or indictment claiming that they committed the offenses.

Question 5

Implicit plea bargaining

Answer 5

occurs when defendant pleads guilty with the expectation of receiving a more lenient sentence

Question 6

charge reduction bargaining

Answer 6

negotiation process between prosecutors and DA involving dismissal of one or more charges against defendants in exchange for a guilty plea

Question 7

Judicial Plea Bargaining

Answer 7

recommended sentence by judge who offers a specific sentence and/or fine in exchange for a guilty plea

Question 8

jury waiver system

Answer 8

occurs when defendants waive their constitutional right to a jury trial and enter into a plea bargain agreement with the prosecutor

Question 9

concession givers

Answer 9

judges who make plea agreement offers to criminal defendants, wherein the defendants will plead guilty to a criminal charge in exchange for judicial leniency

Question 10

sentence recommendation bargaining

Answer 10

negotiation in which the prosecutor proposes a sentence in exchange for a guilty plea

Question 11

typicality hypothesis

Answer 11

view that judges give women greater consideration than men during sentencing, but only when their criminal charges are consistent with stereotypes of female offenders.

Question 12

selective chivarly

Answer 12

view that judges tend to favor white females in their sentence decision compared with females of other races, ethnicities, or males

Question 13

differential discretion

Answer 13

view that sentencing disparities are more likely to occur during informal charge reduction bargaining than in the final sentencing process following trial and the sentencing hearing

Question 14

factual basis for the plea

Answer 14

evidence presented to the judge by the prosecutor that would have been used if a plea bargained case has gone to trial

Question 15

home confinement

Answer 15

housing of offenders in their own homes with or w/o electronic monitoring devices

Question 16

electronic monitoring

Answer 16

the use of electronic devices which emit electronic signals to monitor offenders whereabouts

Question 17

intensive supervised probation

Answer 17

varies from standard probation and includes more face- to- face visits between probation officers and probationers under community supervisors

Question 18

negotiated guilty pleas

Answer 18

pleas of guilty entered in exchange for some form of sentencing leniency during plea bargaining

Question 19

United States Sentencing Guidelines

Answer 19

rules implemented by federal courts in 1987 obligating federal judges to impose presumptive sentences on all convicted offenders

Question 20

self- incrimination

Answer 20

the act of exposing oneself to prosecution by answering questions that may demonstrate involvement in illegal behavior

Question 21

judicial privilege

Answer 21

mean that judges may accept or reject one or more plea bargain agreement terms and substitute more or less punitive sentences

Question 22

habitual offender statutes

Answer 22

statues that generally provide life imprisonment as a mandatory sentence for chronic offenders who have been convicted of 3 or more serious felonies within specific time period

Question 23

three strikes and you’re out policies

Answer 23

a crime prevention and control strategy that proposes to incarcerate those offenders who commit and are convicted of 3 or more serious or violent offenses

Question 24

coconspirator

Answer 24

another party besides the defendant who is alleged to have committed the same crime in concert with the defendant

Question 25

Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure

Answer 25

Contained in Title 18 of the U.S. code, all protocols and regulations that must be followed during offender processing from arrest to conviction

Question 26

federal misdemeanor

Answer 26

any federal crime where the maximum punishment is less than 1 year in prison or jail

Question 27

presentence investigation reports (PSIs)

Answer 27

reports filed by probation or parole officer appointed by the court containing background information that is relevant to the defendant.

Question 28

indeterminate sentencing

Answer 28

sanctioning scheme in a period is set by judges between the earliest date for parole decision and the latest date for completion of the sentence

Question 29

Determinate sentencing

Answer 29

sanctioning scheme in which court sentences offender to incarceration for fixed period and which must be served in full and without parole intervention, less any good time earned in prison