To the Point
Plea Bargaining, Even When You're Innocent
The Bill of Rights guarantees a trial by jury to every American accused of a crime. So why do more than 95% of defendants plead guilty, often despite the fact they're not?
By Warren Olney • • 51m ListenThe Bill of Rights guarantees a trial by jury to every American accused of a crime. So why do more than 95 percent of defendants plead guilty, often despite the fact that they’re not? If the criminal justice system met the Constitutional standard, would it collapse? Also, the politics of the June 1 jobs numbers. On Reporter’s Notebook, is sex-selection a reality in the US?
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In this episode
3 storiesThe Politics of the June 1 Jobs Numbers
Just 69,000 private sector jobs were created in May, and the unemployment rate crept up from 8.1 to 8.2 percent. President Obama tried to make the best of bad news from today's Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Read the story8 minWhy Do Innocent People Plead Guilty?
The Sixth Amendment guarantees a fair trial to every American accused of a crime. But trials are no longer the basis of the criminal justice system. A US Supreme Court majority has said it's not trial by jury that determines "who goes to jail and for how long," it's plea bargaining.
Read the story36 minDoes Sex Selection Happen in America?
Yesterday, House Republicans failed to enact a ban on abortions based on the sex of a child, but assert that they succeeded in embarrassing Democrats, claiming that Democrats don't support women's rights as much as they say.
Read the story7 min
