When Carolyn Jean Hamm was found hanged in her basement in Arlington, Va., police suspected a “strange” young man seen in the area named David Vasquez. Prosecutors, aware of significant weaknesses in ...

A: Here in California, and across the land, a judge can reject a plea bargain in a criminal case. There are a number of factors that may result in the plea agreement being rejected: (a) A victim’s ...

The rise of the plea bargain. While jury trials might have afforded citizens the chance to witness—and even contest—the criminalization of the working class, plea bargains have allowed this ...

Behind the constitutional guarantee of trial by jury lies a shadowy reality of American criminal justice: the vast majority of federal criminal cases never reach a courtroom. Instead, they end in plea ...

Dear PAO, My son Gelo was arrested for allegedly selling prohibited drugs. A relative, who is a law enforcement officer, encouraged us to avail of the remedy of plea bargaining because this is ...