I'm open to the idea of guest bloggers and expect to have my first guest post soon. Anyone else interested with something to say of interest to EDCA practioners or otherwise appropriate for this blog? Nothing from an advocate about a pending case. Maybe a criminal defense issue or even something outside my sphere of expertise. Opinionated, yes. Gossipy, no.
This NY Times, 9/25/11 article entitled "Sentencing Shift Gives New Leverage to Prosecutors" discusses the enormous power prosecutors have to coerce guilty pleas from defendants who otherwise may want to contest their guilt, due to mandatory minimums, sentencing guidelines, and prosecutors' ability to file increased charges if a deal is not accepted. This guilty plea graphic shows how the percentage of federal trials has gone down dramatically since the advent of mandatory minimum penalties and sentencing guidelines in the 1980s.
It has always stuck me as wrong that prosecutors have more control over sentences than judges. While I may disagree with a judge's sentence in a particular case, I much prefer a neutral person deciding a sentence over a partisan party in a contested case. The Supreme Court's Booker decision helps in making the sentencing guidelines advisory rather than mandatory, thereby giving judges much greater discretion to impose a reasonable sentence. Eliminating mandatory minimums would help a lot more.