New NACDL & FAMM Documentary on Plea Bargaining and the Trial Penalty

If you haven't watched the new documentary on plea bargaining and the trial penalty from FAMM and the NACDL, I highly recommend the film to you. The documentary, entitled "The Vanishing Trial," captures the difficult choices faced by defendants when confronting the trial penalty and focusses on four stories that leave the viewer with a vivid sense of the manner in which plea bargaining is jeopardizing our Constitutional right to a trial. 

More information about the documentary and how to view the film is available here.  From the website:

Imagine you’re charged with a crime. Now you must choose between pleading guilty and receiving a shorter sentence–or going to trial and risking decades behind bars. “The Vanishing Trial” focuses on four individuals who were forced to make that excruciating choice. 

Each was threatened with a “trial penalty,” the term used to describe the substantially longer prison sentence a person receives if they exercise their constitutional right to trial instead of pleading guilty. We see how the trial penalty has led to the shocking disappearance of one of the most fundamental individual rights and the explosion in America’s prison population.  

Throughout the film, we hear the perspectives of national experts, including former federal judges and prosecutors, criminal defense lawyers, constitutional law experts, and criminal justice reform advocates.  

“The Vanishing Trial” was produced by FAMM producer/director Wynette Yao and cinematographer/editor Travis Edwards. Yao is an Emmy-nominated producer/director who has worked for National Geographic, Discovery, and other major networks. Edwards is an award-winning cinematographer/editor who has worked on a wide range of documentaries and features.

On Monday, June 15, 2020, there will also be a virtual panel discussion of the film.  More information on this discussion is also available at the above link.