Public Approval of Plea Bargaining in Hong Kong

Abstract

Despite the prevalence of plea bargaining, few studies have endeavored to measure public support of it. The few that did neglected offender characteristics even when it is a core consideration stipulated by prosecution policy in plea bargaining decision making. This study argues that public approval toward plea bargaining is not binary but rather multifaceted and is dependent upon a variety of factors including the parties involved, the type of plea bargain reached, and the characteristics of the defendant. Telephone interviews were conducted with respondents selected randomly from Hong Kong (N ¼ 374) who responded to a series of hypothetical plea bargaining scenarios. Public approval was higher when there was judicial presence and when offenders were elderly, had a clean criminal record, and displayed remorse. It was lower for fact bargaining and offenders from high-income families. Policy implications and reform are discussed.