Plea Bargaining in Criminal Cases - a mutual agreement

Plea bargaining in criminal cases is a process whereby the accused and the prosecution work out a mutually satisfactory disposition of the case subject to court approval. It usually involves the defendant's pleading guilty to a lesser offense or to only one or some of the counts of a multi-count indictment in return for a lighter sentence than that for the graver charge. (Daan vs. Sandiganbayan, G.R. Nos. 163972-77, March 28, 2008)

Aside from the fact that plea bargaining requires the consent of the offended party and the prosecutor it is also required that the lesser offense is necessarily included in the offense charged. 

The lesser offense is necessarily included in the offense charged when the essential ingredients of the lesser offense constitute or form part of those constituting the offense charged.

Despite the fact that the offended party, prosecutor, and the accused mutually agreed to plea bargain, still, the court has the sound discretion whether or not to grant or deny the plea to a lesser offense on the basis of the material circumstances of each case.

Generally, the plea of guilty to a lesser offense should be done at the time of the arraignment of the accused or even after arraignment but before trial after withdrawal of the plea of not guilty.

In the event that the accused pleads guilty to a capital offense the court is mandated to conduct a searching inquiry to ascertain the voluntariness of the plea and that the accused has full comprehension of the consequences of his plea. Mere warning that the accused faces the supreme penalty of death is insufficient.

A capital offense is an offense which, under the law existing at the time of its commission and of the application for admission to bail, may be punished with death. (Section 6, Rule 114, Rules of Court)