There was a case in which defendants were offered a reasonable deal. One lawyer in particular was advocating the plea, almost insisting on it, threatening to withdraw if the client did not take it. On the one hand, there was good reason to take the plea offer. It was a generous offer. But there was another reason. The lawyer was not paid enough to go to trial. That is the danger of paying a lawyer too little. You think you are getting a bargain, when in fact you are getting a limited defense. A lawyer who has been paid enough to go to trial is in it for the long haul. He is prepared to go to war, not just to fight one battle.
Evidence – A defendant must plead or cooperate if the government can prove that he or she made reference to narcotics being shipped to the United States. If the defendant goes to trial despite such strong evidence, there will be blistering consequences. However, if the government can only prove that the defendant was involved in narcotics related activity, but not that he or she knew the drugs were to be imported to the United States, that is a good opportunity to get a plea bargain that you cannot refuse. Why plead to a charge when the evidence is weak? Anything can happen at trial.
Lying Cooperators – Lawyers believe they have to tell a jury that a cooperating witness facing 20 years has a motive to lie. Jurors are not dumb. They understand the reasons a cooperator would testify, and without confirming proof, the government has a hard road to hoe. Defendants awaiting trial hear about cases where people are convicted on the strength of informants. What is missing from these stories is that there was proof confirming what the informants said. The thought of a witnesses lying while providing testimony should not scare defendants. A defendant knows what is true and what is not, and that is what should drive their decisions.
Juries – What about prejudicial juries who are anti-drug and anti Colombian? Do not be fooled. Juries are fair, and will do what the judge instructs them to do. If the judge tells the jury that the government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant knew drugs were to be imported into the United States, the jury will hold the government to that standard. The notion that the jury will disregard the judges instructions and declare, “I do not care what the judge says, I am going to find these Colombian (or Dominican, or Mexican) drug dealers guilty,” is a myth. Even if there are one or two bigots on a jury, they need all jurors to convict, and that is not going to happen.