Innocence and Plea Bargaining

Abstract

The year 2016 produced a record number of exoneration cases involving guilty pleas (National Registry of Exonerations, 2017). Nonetheless, guilty pleas account for a minority of overall exonerations in the National Registry. This chapter provides a broad overview of false guilty pleas, including what they are and why they can be so difficult to document. Also reviewed is current research examining factors that have increased the likelihood of false guilty pleas both in the real world and in the lab. The chapter continues by describing the shadow-of-the-trial model, followed by a discussion of its potential limitations, especially its omission of guilt status as a predictor of plea outcomes. Finally, the chapter concludes with proposed reforms for reducing false guilty pleas as well as with areas of need for future research.