June 4, 2012
In a blog post here, I wrote about overstating possible punishment and the voluntary nature of a plea. In that post, I discussed the dangers of overstating the possible maximum […]
Read post "Overstating Possible Punishment and the (In)voluntary Nature of the Plea — Part II"March 27, 2012
In a post here discussing application of post-release supervision periods to multiple sentences Jamie raised the question of whether over-advising a defendant as to the maximum possible sentence associated with […]
Read post "Overstating Possible Punishment and the (In)voluntary Nature of the Plea"March 26, 2012
The Supreme Court decided two cases last week about ineffective assistance of counsel during plea bargaining. The cases, Lafler v. Cooper and Missouri v. Frye, made a big splash in […]
Read post "Ineffective Assistance and Plea Bargaining"April 7, 2010
Can a defendant be ordered to pay restitution based on offenses that did not result in a conviction? Of course a defendant should not be ordered to pay restitution for […]
Read post "Restitution to Victims of Unconvicted Conduct"January 22, 2010
The court of appeals decided State v. Salvetti this week. The case involves several interesting issues, but I want to focus on the court’s approval of “package deal” plea bargaining. […]
Read post "Package Deal Plea Bargains"October 12, 2009
When a defendant pleads guilty, he waives a variety of rights, including the right to a trial, the right to confront the witnesses against him, and so on. The waiver […]
Read post "Waivers in Plea Agreements"