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Procuring Guilty Pleas For International Crimes: The Limited Influence Of Sentence Discounts, Nancy A. Combs
Procuring Guilty Pleas For International Crimes: The Limited Influence Of Sentence Discounts, Nancy A. Combs
Vanderbilt Law Review
Approximately 90 percent of all American criminal cases are disposed of by means of guilty pleas, and a large percentage of defendants brought before courts in England, Australia, and other countries that use common-law procedures likewise plead guilty. Why do substantial numbers of defendants in national criminal justice systems choose to convict themselves when they are entitled to have their guilt formally adjudicated? The widely accepted primary reason is that they receive sentencing discounts when they choose to selfconvict. Most defendants charged with domestic crimes plead guilty following a process of plea bargaining between defense counsel and prosecutors. Although plea …
When Courts Make Law: How The International Criminal Tribunals Recast The Laws Of War, Allison M. Danner
When Courts Make Law: How The International Criminal Tribunals Recast The Laws Of War, Allison M. Danner
Vanderbilt Law Review
This Article argues that states often tacitly delegate lawmaking authority and that the Security Council did so in the case of the Tribunals. Although the historical record cannot definitely prove its validity, this hypothesis is supported by evidence from other international courts that lawmaking by international judiciaries is widespread and accepted by states, even if formally proscribed. The Article suggests that states do not acknowledge this delegation, however, in order both to perpetuate the fiction of state hegemony over international norm generation and to provide a shield behind which international courts can make law without suffering paralyzing political pressure that …