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42 Aust. & N.Z. J. Criminology 1 (2009)

handle is hein.journals/anzjc42 and id is 1 raw text is: Articles Intersections Between In-Court Procedures and the Production of Guilty Pleas Sharyn Roach Anleu and Kathy Mack Flinders University, Australia n Australia (as elsewhere) most criminal defendants plead guilty and do not contest the charges at trial. Our research suggests that guilty pleas can result from an intersectional process, in which in-court events inter- act with out-of-court activities and discussions. This article draws on an observational study of criminal matters in Australian lower courts. It examines the early stages of in-court proceedings, in particular the ways in which the judicial officer's - here the magistrate - decisions about adjournments, contribute to and are driven by the guilty plea production process.While Australian magistrates and judges have no direct role in or even knowledge of the substance of plea or charge bargaining, they can influence the circumstances for a prompt guilty plea. Keywords: adjournments, courts, guilty pleas, magistrates In Australia (as elsewhere), most criminal defendants plead guilty and do not contest the charges at trial (Baldwin & McConville, 1977, 1979; Mack & Roach Anleu, 1995; Mather, 1974, 1979; Sentencing Advisory Council [Victoria], 2007). The key active role of the judge or magistrate is to sentence the defendant. In many jurisdictions, at least two-thirds of defendants, and often more, are sentenced following a plea of guilty (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, pp. 14, 26). While Australian magistrates and judges have no direct role in or even knowledge of the substance of plea or charge bargaining, they are aware that a contested criminal trial is unusual. This article demonstrates the ways in which they can facilitate the production of a guilty plea without direct intervention, thus preserving the princi- ples of judicial neutrality and the voluntariness of the guilty plea. Defendants plead guilty for a variety of reasons, including: to benefit from any sentence discount, a sense of guilt or remorse, wanting to get the matter out of the way, shame, or a desire to protect another person. Guilty pleas may occur with or without legal advice. Plea negotiations between the prosecutor and a defendant's legal representative may result in reduced or different charges to which the defen- dant will plead guilty. The most frequent type of plea bargaining in Australia is discussions between defence and prosecution resulting in a charge reduction, which usually occur in the defendant's absence and outside the format court proceedings Address for correspondence: Sharyn Roach Anleu, PO Box 2100, Adelaide SA 5001, Australia. E-mail: judicial.research@flinders.edu.au THEAUSTRALIAN AND NEW ZEALAND JOURNAL OF CRIMINOLOGY VOLUME 42 NUMBER I 2009 PP 1-23

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