Part 1 The Crown Court: background; theoretical context; methodology - research aims, research methods; results - judicial compliance with S48, structural factors and sentence discounts, penal decisions and sentence discounts, offence-related factros and sentence discounts, offender-related factors and sentence discounts, differences in practice between Centres, Court of Appeal guidance and sentence discounts; conclusions and implications. Part 2 The Magistrates' Court: introduction; background; methodology - research aims, research methods; results - magistrates' compliance with S48, penal decisions and sentence discounts, structural factos and sentence discounts; conclusion. Part 3 A comparative analysis - the United States: introduction; "plea bargaining" - a matter of terminology; sentence discounts in the United States - the federal sentencing guidelines, state sentencing systems; conclusion and implications.
