Reply #188: there's no such thing as an informal binding agreement [View All]

[TorchTheWitch]

And damn good thing there isn't... imagine the things people could be threatened or coerced into agreeing to that would be binding! This is why there is a formal on the record proceeding which all parties, including the judge, have to agree to so there can be no mistake in what is being agreed. When a person peads guilty as part of a plea agreement they give up very important rights like the right to a trial. However, as indicated by the section of the penal code the judge cited, the judge is not bound to the agreement even after formally accepting it. When that happens, the defendant has the right to back out of the deal as if it was never made, the guilty plea is thrown out as if it was never made, and the case proceeds on that basis.