Can an appeal be made to reduce the sentence of someone who excepted a plea bargain?
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Can an appeal be made to reduce the sentence of someone who excepted a plea bargain?
Someone I know was faced with a first degree murder charge and was offered a plea bargain if he plead guilty to rape. he received 37 years and the actual person who committed the rape is incarcerated, is there anyway to appeal and get a sentence reduction? He has served 8 years so far.
Asked on November 17, 2010 under Criminal Law, Michigan
Answers:
M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 14 years ago | Contributor
This issue is too complicated to determine here. Your Friend - or you on his behalf - needs to seek help from an attorney in the area who could take the matter apart step by step. Was he represented by counsel when he took the plea bargain? Did he understand what his rights were at the time? These are all questions that need to be answered. If you are claiming that he took the plea because he did not want to take the chance of being sentenced to the other charge, but that he maintained his innocence, and now the true killer and/or rapist has been caught then that is your basis for legal consultation.
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