The Pressure to Plead

Kaitlin Bailey*, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26505

Field (Broad Category): Criminology/Criminal Justice (Behavioral & Social Sciences) 

Student’s Major: Criminology 

Plea bargaining exists as a fundamental mechanism of the misdemeanor court system in the United States. While the criminal justice process would fail to function without it, research conducted by legal scholars, such as Alexandra Natapoff, has demonstrated that it often denies defendants counsel, due process, and self-determination. Such constitutional neglect leaves defendants labeled criminal, a title that carries vast social and economic repercussions. Over the course of 14 weeks from September to December, a small research team of students from West Virginia University and I observed the Magistrate court of Monongalia County, West Virginia to investigate how local proceedings compare to those discussed in Natapoff’s work. The Magistrate court oversees all proceedings for misdemeanor cases, as well as pre-trial proceedings for felony cases. Our observations reveal that there exists an overwhelming incentive for defendants to waive the rights guaranteed to them in the Constitution rather than exercise them, and how this negatively impacts vulnerable people. My paper and presentation will dissect the systematic flaws within the system that result in pleas instead of justice. 

Funding: 

Program/mechanism supporting research/creative efforts: WVU 497-level course