<P> Plea bargains are so common in the Superior Courts of California (the general trial courts) that the Judicial Council of California has published an optional seven - page form (containing all mandatory advisements required by federal and state law) to help prosecutors and defense attorneys reduce such bargains into written plea agreements . </P> <P> Certain aspects of the American justice system serve to promote plea bargaining . For example, the adversarial nature of the U.S. criminal justice system puts judges in a passive role, in which they have no independent access to information with which to assess the strength of the case against the defendant . The prosecutor and defense may thus control the outcome of a case through plea bargaining . The court must approve a plea bargain as being within the interests of justice . </P> <P> The lack of compulsory prosecution also gives prosecutors greater discretion as well as the inability of crime victims to mount a private prosecution and their limited ability to influence plea agreements . Defendants who are held in custody--who either do not have the right to bail or cannot afford bail, or who do not qualify for release on their own recognizance--may get out of jail immediately following the judge's acceptance of a plea . </P> <P> Generally, once a plea bargain is made and accepted by the courts, the matter is final and cannot be appealed . However, a defendant may agree to a "conditional" plea bargain, whereby s / he pleads guilty and accepts a sentence, but reserves the right to appeal a specific matter (such as violation of a constitutional right). If the defendant does not win on appeal the agreement is carried out; if the defendant is successful on appeal the bargain is terminated . The defendant in Doggett v. United States made such a bargain, reserving the right to appeal solely on the grounds that he was not given a speedy trial as required by the United States Constitution; Doggett's claim was upheld by the United States Supreme Court and he was freed . </P>

The type and level of formal charge to file against a criminal suspect is solely the decision of the