The New-Brunswick Aboriginal Duty Counsel Project

17. GUILTY PLEAS AT FIRST APPEARANCE

Seventy-five clients entered pleas of guilty. Data about the specific efforts undertaken by the duty counsel lawyer for particular clients were not gathered. We know that the lawyer spoke to sentence for those who wished to plead guilty, but details of negotiations with the Crown or reduced charges were not collected.

Data on outcome were available for 41 of the 75 clients who entered guilty pleas at first appearance. The table below shows the sentences received. In all, about 30 % were given a jail sentence alone or jail combined with either fine or fine and probation. Almost 70 percent were given sentences involving other than incarceration

Table 17.1: Sentences Received by Clients Entering Guilty Pleas
Sentence Number Percent
Jail 7 17.1 %
Fine 14 34.2 %
Probation 9 22.1 %
Jail + Fine 1 2.4 %
Fine + Prob. 5 12.3 %
J + F + P 5 12.3 %
TOTAL 41 100.0 %