Plea Bargaining Video Transcript:

People have all sorts of different ideas about plea bargaining. But it is the way most criminal cases are resolved - just like most civil cases are resolved by settlement agreement. The benefits of a plea bargain to a defendant in a criminal case primarily involve certainty. Psychologically it is very hard to face the unknown. A jury trial always involves lots of uncertainty - maybe you’ll be acquitted, or maybe you’ll be found guilty. With a plea agreement, in many cases you’ll be able to know what is going to happen. Also, a plea agreement can limit your exposure. This is a lawyer’s way of saying that your sentence will not be the maximum that it could be under the law.