Sentencing Disparity and Mass Incarceration

Abstract

This chapter examines how the system of pleas impacts two areas that receive special attention in criminal justice: (1) sentencing disparities and (2) mass incarceration. The first section discusses ways that plea bargaining leads to different punishment levels for individuals whose criminal conduct is otherwise similar. These differences include reduced punishment due to count or charge reductions, or favorable sentence recommendations or agreements, in exchange for a willingness to plead guilty or to provide assistance to the prosecution and law enforcement. The next section discusses how the system of pleas enables mass incarceration. Although the system of pleas was well established by the onset of mass incarceration, and thus did not cause mass incarceration, plea bargaining did create the infrastructure that made mass incarceration possible.