Regulating the new gold standard of criminal justice: Confronting the lack of record-keeping in the American criminal justice system

Despite recent Supreme Court decisions acknowledging the constitutional importance of plea-bargaining to the criminal justice system, defendants’ Sixth Amendment rights remain unprotected at the plea-bargaining stage due to the lack of record-keeping. This article illustrates the problems that stem from the lack of sufficient record-keeping during the plea bargaining stage and offers avenues for change. In particular, this article looks to the legislature to provide a solution in one of three ways: third-party reporting; mandatory reporting by defense counsel; or instituting a bench trial system in lieu of most plea bargains.