AZlawyer
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A question for one of our attorneys.......................
First a little background. In December 2005 my nephew was murdered by his then 19-year-old step-son in the state of Texas. The murder weapon was a baseball bat and the stepson was arrested at the scene of the crime - the family home. Shortly after his arrest he confessed to the crime.
Since the step-son had already confessed, there was no trial, but in August 2007 there was a week long sentencing hearing. There was testimony from from the defendant's family arguing for leniency, and my nephew's mother, brother, sister, and his son and two daughters from a prior marriage arguing for the maximum sentence (this wasn't a death penalty case).
Just before the case was to go to the jury, who would determine his sentence, the defendant's attorney told the court they wanted to plea bargain the sentence. The defense attorney and prosecution attorney conferred, and negotiated a sentence that everyone agreed on. As it turned out, the jury was polled and they all were leaning toward the sentence that was finally agreed on.
My question is: If Casey is convicted, can the defense ask to plea bargain the sentence during the penalty phase?
There isn't much "wiggle room" for a plea with only 2 options--LWOP or death. IOW, there's no compromise that the 2 sides can reach.