Guilty pleas in children: legitimacy, vulnerability, and the need for increased protection

Abstract

This article assesses the extent to which current guilty plea procedure is consistent with legitimations of criminal convictions, with a focus on decision making in child defendants. I argue that in the context of plea decisions in children, the criminal justice system must ensure that defendants make decisions that result in accurate convictions that are reached in a fair way that respects rights. The current system does not do this due to an almost exclusive focus on autonomy. This focus is likely to be leading to illegitimate convictions, most importantly children pleading guilty when innocent. Drawing on psychological theory, I develop a model of guilty plea decision making and draw on this model to identify relevant vulnerabilities of child defendants. Based on this analysis, I identify ways in which current procedure in England and Wales may be leading to systematic problems with the legitimacy of convictions of children, and suggest reforms to enhance such legitimacy. These reform suggestions focus on England and Wales but have implications for plea systems around the world.