Read more
This provocative book encourages readers to critically reflect on the reliance of the criminal process on early guilty pleas. This book is addressed to scholars, legal practitioners, policymakers and those interested in criminal justice, socio-legal studies and empirical legal research.
List of contents
1. Introduction: the history of the problem of 'Cracked Trials'; 2. The sliding scale of sentence discounts; 3. Implicit (and explicit) plea bargaining; 4. Revisiting the assumptions and methodology; 5. Factors affecting the timing of guilty pleas; 6. Trial and late-plea penalties; 7. Consistency in applying sentence discounts; 8. Public opinion and sentence discounts; 9. Conclusion; Index.
About the author
Kevin Kwok-yin Cheng is Associate Professor and Assistant Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Law, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He has published widely about guilty pleas, plea bargaining, procedural justice and sentencing. He is co-author of The Hong Kong Legal System (second edition) (Cambridge, 2020).
Summary
This provocative book encourages readers to critically reflect on the reliance of the criminal process on early guilty pleas. This book is addressed to scholars, legal practitioners, policymakers and those interested in criminal justice, socio-legal studies and empirical legal research.
Foreword
A detailed study of the importance of the timing of guilty pleas and its effects across different legal jurisdictions.
