Taking a Deal: Exploring Influences on Plea Decisions among Adolescents and Adults

• In Event: Juvenile Offenders and Justice: Mass Incarceration, Plea Bargaining, Desistance, and Mortality

Abstract

Most criminal cases (90-95%) in the U.S. are resolved through plea bargaining. However, few studies exist concerning this process, including developmental differences in plea decisions. In the present study, we interviewed youth (12- to 17-year-olds), younger (18- to 25-year-olds), and older (25-years and older) adults about their engagement in criminal and unethical behaviors. They were told that their admissions and denials would have either immediate (i.e., answering burdensome and repetitive questions) or future (i.e., meeting with a police officer to discuss their responses) consequences. Regardless of their interview responses, all participants were told that their answers would, in fact, result in a meeting with a police officer. Participants were offered the opportunity to avoid this meeting by agreeing to work in our research lab for 30 hours over the next month. Preliminary analyses suggest that adolescents (67%) were more likely to take the plea deal than older (22%) and younger (45%) adults. Future analyses will focus on the effects of immediate and future consequences on participants’ interview responses and whether these potential consequences influenced their plea decisions. Results have implications for interrogations and legal decision making among vulnerable youth.

Authors

• Andrea Arndorfer, Florida International University

• Lindsay Malloy, Florida International University