Problem
Most criminal defendants plead guilty in a process called "plea bargaining." In the classic book The Process is the Punishment, political scientist Malcolm Feeley shows that plea bargaining is not what you think it is. For one thing, there's actually very little "bargaining" in plea bargaining. A chapter from that book is assigned for Week 11. In this essay, describe how plea bargaining actually works. Specifically, how do prosecutors and defense attorneys determine what they call the "worth" of a case and how heavy should be the punishment? Then, describe the problem of false convictions (the conviction of actually innocent people), as discussed in the materials for Week 12. How common are false convictions? Under what conditions are they most likely to occur? In concluding your essay, put the two together: in light of the nature of plea bargaining and the problem of false convictions, how fair and just are criminal courts?