Over the past 30 years, the number of defendants convicted in Federal Courts after pleading guilty to the charges pressed by prosecutors has increased steadily, to the point where approximately 97% of convictions are the result of a guilty plea.
This is concerning for a number of reasons. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff cites the following:
It is one-sided, as it deprives citizens from presenting their arguments and having their case heard by an impartial jury or judge.
Plea barganing happens largely in closed door negotiations, with limited judicial oversight, therefore lending itself to arbitrariness.
Since a guilty plea is normally conducive to a more lenient sentence, defendants are under pressure to enter into a plea bargain which can potentially lead to false confessions.
To read more about organizations addressing this problem visit:
The data visualized in this page was compilled by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, through its Federal Justice Statistics Resource Center (FJSRC). The source database comprises statistics on cases processed in the federal criminal justice system during the years 1998-2014, including data on federal law enforcement, prosecution, courts, and incarcerations.
Learn more about the FCCPS and explore case processing data here.
In 1998, 93.82% of all convictions in federal courts were the result of guilty pleas. By 2014, the national average increased to 97.87%, the State with the highest proportion of convictions due to guilty pleas being New Mexico with 99.65%.