ANALYSIS OF THE BENEFITS OF PLEA BARGAINS IN THE BRAZILIAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Abstract

This article sought to analyze the institute of the criminal transaction, provided for in Law 9.099/95, which established the Special Criminal Courts (JECRIM) as a tool for optimizing the Brazilian criminal justice system, notorious for its slowness and high incarceration rate according to statistics from the National Council of Justice. Using a qualitative approach, based on a literature review and documentary analysis, it is argued that the criminal transaction offers substantial benefits. They include contributing to procedural speed, by quickly resolving offences of lesser offensive potential; promoting decriminalization, presenting alternatives to deprivation of liberty and helping to reduce prison overcrowding; and significant advantages for the accused, such as not having a criminal record, minimizing social stigma. The conclusion is that, despite possible debates about its social perception, the criminal transaction is consolidated as a relevant mechanism for efficiency, rationalization of the criminal response and the promotion of faster and more proportional justice for low-impact crimes.