Crim Ch 12

For a guilty plea to be based in fact, it must be based on which of the following?

Actual criminal conduct

A hair stylist is charged with assault and battery for getting into a verbal altercation with a customer, threatening to cut the customer, and then cutting the customer's hair very short and intentionally lopsided. In court, she pleads guilty in exchange for a lesser sentence and agrees to relinquish her stylist license and quit working in the industry. What best describes this plea bargain?

Ad hoc plea agreement

Charles pled guilty to the rape and murder of a young girl. As a part of his plea bargain, the prosecutor also asked Charles to make a donation to a charity that helps the victims of rape. Which term can be used to describe the actions of the prosecutor?

Ad hoc plea bargain

________ is a term used to describe some of the strange concessions that defendants agree to make as part of prosecutors' decisions to secure guilty pleas.

Ad hoc plea bargain

Matthew was charged with first-degree murder, but pled guilty to second-degree murder since the evidence presented by the prosecution linked him to the crime. Matthew asserted during his arraignment that he was innocent. The plea bargain resulted in Mathew facing 10 years in prison, and he was not required to explain the details of the offense to the judge. Which term aptly describes Mathew's plea?

Alford plea

Which term best describes the situation where the defendant pleads guilty to a crime but asserts his or her innocence?

Alford plea

Which is true of appeals?

Appealing the court's decision to deny a plea withdrawal is not the same as appealing one's conviction.

If the defendant enters a plea of guilty, the trial judge must do which of the following?

Determine that the defendant understands the plea

Liam was accused in the murder of Patricia. He accepted the prosecution's charges and pled guilty. On making an inquiry, the court discovered that Liam claimed that he had not committed the crime with which he was charged. Under which of the following elements can the court deem the guilty plea invalid?

Factual basis

Terrence is a police officer who is indicted for voluntary manslaughter when an unarmed juvenile dies in police custody. He is indicted along with three other officers who were present during the incident. Terrence accepts a plea deal. Which is true of Terrence's situation once he accepts the plea?

He may be required to testify against his codefendants.

In order for defense counsel to be considered "effective" according to the Sixth Amendment, which must be true?

He or she must ensure that the client understands the consequences of the plea bargain.

With reference to plea bargaining, in which situation will a plea be invalid?

If the defendant pleads guilty to a crime he or she did not commit.

Which is true regarding victim involvement in plea bargains?

In some states, victim input is solicited during the bargaining process.

Melissa pled guilty to first-degree murder. However, the plea was eventually deemed invalid because Melissa was not aware that it meant a waiver of her constitutional rights. Which of the following elements of a plea bargain is missing in this case?

Intelligence

Which is an argument against plea bargaining?

It allows the prosecution to ʺoverchargeʺ

Which is true regarding Mabry v. Johnson (1984)?

It determined that a plea bargain is valid in the event that the prosecutor offers a greater sentence if/when the defendant rejects the initial bargain.

Which is an argument for plea bargaining?

It saves judicial resources

Which is a disadvantage of plea bargaining?

It undermines the criminal justice system as the prosecutor effectively decides the defendant's guilt.

Kenneth is a street-level drug dealer who is arrested for multiple offenses. The prosecution offers him a plea deal that will result in 90 days in jail and 2 years of supervised probation if he cooperates and provides information on a higher level drug dealer. Kenneth and the court accept the plea deal and he provides the prosecutor with the requested information. When it is time for him to go before the judge, the prosecutor who offered him the plea deal has left on maternity leave and another prosecutor is representing the state. The new prosecutor requests the maximum sentence. Kenneth's defense attorney objects to the new sentencing. The judge is likely to side with the defense because of which Supreme Court decision?

Santobello v. New York (1971)

Marcie is arrested for assault and battery. She agrees to the prosecution's plea bargain. Which is Marcie most likely to experience next?

She will be sentenced.

Which is an example of ad hoc plea bargaining?

The accused is required to accept an extraordinary condition of probation.

Which is a reason for the applicability of the Sixth Amendment right-to-counsel during plea bargaining?

The charges are filed before the bargaining begins.

If a plea agreement is rejected, which of the following will be done?

The court must advise the defendant that it is not required to follow the terms of the plea deal and give the defendant an opportunity to withdraw the plea. This must be done on the record and in open court.

Marlo accepts the terms of a plea deal that the prosecution offers and pleads guilty to second degree murder. He later withdraws his guilty plea. Which is the most likely cause for his plea withdrawal?

The court rejects the terms on which the prosecution and defense settled.

In deciding whether or not to accept a plea bargain, the interests of which two must the court weigh?

The plea agreement and the public

Ben has been charged with assault. He enters into a plea bargain with the prosecutor and pleads guilty. Which is a consequence of Ben entering into a plea bargain?

The prosecutor effectively determined Ben's guilt

James is accused in the abduction of a 12-year-old girl. The prosecutor tells James that state laws provide for a more lenient sentence if the defendant pleads guilty. The prosecutor is referring to ________ in this scenario.

statutory inducements

A guilty plea is ʺintelligentʺ if it is _________.

understood

Approximately ________ percent of criminal convictions in the United States result from plea bargaining.

90