Resolved: In the United States criminal justice system, plea bargaining is, on balance, unjust

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Plea bargaining is a longstanding issue within the justice system, and an often uncomfortable one. It's easy to frame it as a way for prosecutors to save time and resources which could be better devoted to other cases, and for defendants to move on with their lives. But it's also easy to see it as a tool with which prosecutors can threaten defendants with harsher sentences solely for seeking a trial for the truth. Thus, this debate aims to confront this complex issue head-on with a question often raised but never legislated: On balance, is this practice more unjust or just?

Definitions

Plea bargaining: an arrangement between a prosecutor and a defendant whereby the defendant pleads guilty to a charge, or charges, in the expectation of leniency during sentencing.