If you enter a plea agreement with the government, you generally will not be charged with more crimes arising out of the same events/transactions that led to your prosecution in the first place. The exception to this general rule is if you committed more serious crimes the government is not aware of. For example, if you plead guilty to drug charges and agree to a stipulated sentence you could still be charged with murder if you were part of a drug deal that resulted in a murder and the government later finds out about it. In other words, in every plea agreement, the federal government always keeps open the option of more significant charges involving violent crimes that they do not otherwise know about. This, however, should not come as a surprise. Common sense dictates the government is not going to tie its hands to prosecuting a violent crime it does not know about. A “plea agreement” is just a fancy term for a contract. When you choose to enter a plea agreement, you are basically entering into an enforceable contract with the federal government in a criminal case. This contract is enforceable in federal court. Under this contract, you give up certain rights (such as the right to a jury trial or an appeal) and the government gives up certain rights (such as the right to argue for a harsh sentence or charge you with similar crimes to what you are pleading to). Once you understand that a plea agreement is basically a negotiable contract, you understand how important it is to have an attorney that knows how to successfully negotiate on your behalf and to ensure the contract does not have loopholes that allows the government to bring additional charges. When you enter into a plea agreement, you need to have confidence that your attorney understands the interplay between the agreement, the indictment, other activities for which you may not have been charged and how the sentence will be imposed. For better or worse, the federal system is basically a system of plea bargains. Very few cases go to trial because of the harsh outcomes that could result from a jury conviction. There has been a lot of scholarship dedicated to criticizing this system and the death of the jury trial in the federal criminal system but the fact remains that the overwhelming majority of federal criminal cases end with a plea bargain. Knowing this, it is extremely important that your attorney is a good negotiator and understands how plea bargains work. Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, The Federal Defenders handles federal criminal cases (both trials and appeals) throughout the United States. With a combined total of more than 100 years of experience, the attorneys and investigators at The Federal Defenders know what it takes to win and achieve favorable outcomes for clients. Call us today at (800) 712-000 for a free and confidential consultation.