Definition
Plea bargain (criminal law) (Ro.: acord de recunoaştere a vinovăţiei, Fr.: plaidoyer de marchandage, n.m., Gr.: συμβιβασμός κατηγορούμενου – εισαγγελέα, Cz.: dohoda o vině a trestu, Cr.: pregovaranje o priznanju krivnje) (See also: probable cause, reasonable doubt) = an agreement concluded between the defendant and the prosecutor in criminal cases, by means of which the defendant agrees to plead guilty to a lesser charge.
In return, the prosecutor recommends a reduced sentence. The majority of plea bargains is subject to the approval of the court.
Useful links
Legislation
http://legeaz.net/noul-cod-procedura-penala-ncpp/art-478 - Criminal Procedure Code, Art. 478, Romania [Romanian]
https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/frcrmp/rule_11 - Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 11, U.S. [English]
http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichCode.do;jsessionid=58CA8172099EC1769059B48612972326.tpdila07v_3?idSectionTA=LEGISCTA000006167486&cidTexte=LEGITEXT000006071154&dateTexte=20150706 – Code de procédure pénale, Art. 495-7, France [French]
Case Law
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx?i=001-142672#{%22itemid%22:[%22001-142672%22]} - European Court of Human Rights, Natsvlishvili and Togonidze v. Georgia, 2014
https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/390/570/ - United States Supreme Court, United States v. Jackson 390 U.S. 570, 1968
https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/397/742/ - United States Supreme Court, Brady v. United States 397 U.S. 742, 1970
http://supreme-court-cases.insidegov.com/l/7735/United-States-v-Carlos-Dominguez-Benitez - United States Supreme Court, United States v. Dominguez Benitez, 2004
https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/559/08-651/ - United States Supreme Court, Padilla v. Kentucky 559 U.S., 2010
http://supreme-court-cases.insidegov.com/l/8254/Jeff-Premo-Superintendent-Oregon-State-Penitentiary-Petitioner-v-Randy-Joseph-Moore - United States Supreme Court, Premo v. Moore, 2011
Organisations and associations
http://www.cdpp.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/CDPP-GDM-Charge-Negotiation.pdf - Guidelines and Directions Manual. Charge Negotiations, Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecution (Australia’s Federal Prosecution Service) (Australia)
http://www.cdpp.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/Prosecution-Policy-of-the-Commonwealth.pdf - Prosecution Policy of Commonwealth, Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecution (Australia’s Federal Prosecution Service) (Australia)
http://www.sfo.gov.uk/media/99216/guilty_pleas_and_plea_bargaining_sfo_operational_handbook_topic.pdf - Operational Handbook. Guilty Pleas and Plea Bargaining, United Kingdom Serious Fraud Office (UK)
http://www.sfo.gov.uk/media/111905/ag_s_guidelines_on_plea_discussions_in_cases_of_serious_or_complex_fraud.pdf - United Kingdom Attorney General’s Guidelines on Plea Discussions in Cases of Serious or Complex Fraud, United Kingdom Serious Fraud Office (UK)
https://www.gov.uk/the-acceptance-of-pleas-and-the-prosecutors-role-in-the-sentencing-exercise#c-the-basis-of-plea - Guidelines on the acceptance of pleas and the prosecutor's role in the sentencing exercise (revised 2009), United Kingdom Attorney General's Office (UK)
https://www.cps.gov.uk/publications/code_for_crown_prosecutors/guiltypleas.html – Code for Crown Prosecutors. Accepting Guilty Pleas, The Crown Prosecution Service (UK)
Online Publications
http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6538&context=jclc - Smith, Douglas A., 1987, The Plea Bargain Controversy, Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology
http://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=6067&context=jclc - Thomas, Philip A., 1978, Plea Bargaining in England, Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology
http://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2238&context=californialawreview - Alschuler, Albert W., 1981, The Changing Plea Bargaining Debate, California Law Review
http://www.yalelawjournal.org/note/vindicating-vindictiveness-prosecutorial-discretion-and-plea-bargaining-past-and-future - Lieb, Doug, 2014, Vindicating Vindictiveness: Prosecutorial Discretion and Plea Bargaining, Past and Future, Yale Law Journal
http://weblaw.usc.edu/why/students/orgs/rlsj/assets/docs/issue_17/07_Wan_Macro.pdf - Wan, Tina, 2007, The Unnecessary Evil Of Plea Bargaining: An Unconstitutional Conditions Problem And A Not-So-Least Restrictive Alternative, Southern California Review of Law and Social Justice
http://webjcli.org/article/view/203/272 - Alge, Daniele, 2013, Negotiated Plea Agreements in Cases of Serious and Complex Fraud in England and Wales: A New Conceptualisation of Plea Bargaining?, European Journal of Current Legal Issues
http://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1843&context=mulr - Fine, Ralph, 1987, Plea Bargaining: An Unnecessary Evil, Marquette Law Review
Publications
Furse, Mark, 2012, The Criminal Law of Competition in the UK and in the US: Failure and Success, UK, Edward Elgar Publishing, p. 152