Understanding Plea Deals: How to Determine Fairness
So you want to know if you’re getting a fair plea deal. Hi, my name is Carl Birkhead. I’m a Tulsa criminal defense attorney with Wirth Law Office in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I’ve been practicing family and criminal law for about eight years now, and I want to help you make law easy by just talking a little bit about negotiating plea deals and whether or not you know it’s a good deal.
So there’s always just a little bit of hesitation or a little bit of uncertainty when you’re going in to try to make a plea deal, because are you getting messed over? Is this a really good deal? Is this truly what is in your best interest? You know, how does this compare with other deals that are being offered to other clients and other cases, and other situations? Those are all great questions.
Factors Influencing a Plea Deal
The sad truth is, though, you don’t really get the answers to those questions before you enter into the deal, and here’s why. Because every deal that’s ever negotiated with any prosecutor is going to be unique to that situation. I had a client recently. He had some alcohol-related charges. He had some domestic violence charges. He had some obstruction charges. It was just a whole bundle of fun wrapped up in a really unfortunate night.
My client had a bad night. I’m not going to disclose whether or not substances were involved. I’m just going to say it wasn’t the best night for my dude here. And yeah, we got a couple of the charges dropped. He ended up having to take a plea to some other charges. He didn’t think that he got a good deal because the plea ultimately ended up in a conviction. Those charges are going to stay on his record at least for a little bit of time, and he’s not happy about that.
Comparing Cases: Why Every Situation is Different
The day that we ended the plea, there were a whole bunch of other people there that were entering pleas for better deals or what my client believed to be better deals than what he was getting, and he didn’t understand why they and not me, why those cases and not mine. And guys, ultimately, it really just comes down to the facts of the situation. It comes down to which prosecutor you have. It comes down to how egregious the offense was that you’re charged with, allegedly.
This person was accused of smacking the ever-loving dog fire out of his kid, a teenage kid, but still his kid. It was one of the charges that we were facing. It was one of the charges that actually got dropped, but it was still a charge that was pending against my client, and he hated that, that one specifically, and didn’t understand why he couldn’t get a deferred sentence on the rest, and unfortunately, he just wasn’t eligible for it, and the state did not want to try to bend the rules in this case.
Making the Right Decision for Your Future
So yeah, it’s tough to know whether or not you’re getting a fair deal, and there are so many factors that go into play in determining what is or is not an appropriate deal for you. Ultimately, the question comes down to what is going to be the best fit for your life. Is it going to be taking the deal that’s been worked out, especially if it’s a deal that keeps you out of prison, or is it going to be rolling the dice, going to trial, having to shell out a lot more money for it, and possibly ultimately still ending up in jail over something that you really shouldn’t be in jail for?
That’s always the other end that you’re looking at. If you don’t like the deal that’s on the table, you can roll the dice, but you’ve got to understand that when you roll those dice, they could come up showing that you’re going directly to jail. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. So you’ve got to weigh that for yourself and decide whether or not that’s worth it for you.
Contact Us for a No-Obligation Consultation
If you have questions about this, definitely give me a call. I’m happy to sit down. I’m happy to go over the pros and cons with you as much as you want. Let’s sit down, let’s figure this out, and let’s make sure that you’re getting taken care of. My name is Carl Birkhead. I’m a Tulsa felony defense attorney with Wirth Law Office, and I want to help you make law easy. Call us at 918-879-1681 for a low-cost initial strategy session.
