Drug Deal Case Assignment

The drug case is being handled by the County Prosecutor's Office because from what has been noted about the case, the individual arrested was not a big drug dealer, but one within the head of the organization. The case itself does not warrant a Federal level charge in spite of the fact that the individual was caught in possession of crack and crystal methamphetamine. 

It is possible for someone to be charged with a crime before they are actually arrested. Usually if this occurs, the judge presiding over the case will issue a warrant for the arrest of the individual. The person is then booked once they are officially arrested which entails fingerprints and other procedures such as pictures, etc. The person is then held in custody pending a court hearing. The drug dealer who was arrested was read his Miranda rights which are rights that are utilized by law enforcement to ensure that the suspect understands that he/she is being charged with a crime, (Hinson, 2013) and that they have rights within the confines of the case itself. 

Plea bargaining is commonly described as an agreement in a criminal case between the prosecutor and the defendant in which the defendant agrees to plead guilty to a charge in return for some form of compromise from the prosecutor which can range to a dismissal of the charges, a lesser charge or a moderate sentence. Plea bargaining is fairly common in the United States legal system because some think it's better to take the please instead of facing possible discrimination in the justice system. More than 90% of court cases are never tried because of the plea bargaining process (Lynch, 2003). It would stand to reason to make a plea bargain with the drug dealer who was arrested in order to obtain pivotal information that could lead to the arrest of a higher and larger organization of drug dealing. The dealer would be possibly offered a lesser sentence which may include some form of community service or probation as a result and jail time. The prosecutor of the case typically makes the decision based upon statutes and other related cases where plea bargains were offered.

References

Hinson, C. (2013). What happens when a person is charged with a crime? Retrieved from http://www.alllaw.com/articles/criminal/article1.asp

Lynch, T. (2003). The case against plea bargaining. Retrieved from http://www.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/serials/files/regulation/2003/10/v26n3-7.pdf