It’s how the courts have always worked. Plead guilty and you will be found guilty. Don’t and there’s a chance you might be found not guilty. I happen to think Lucy’s sentence was too harsh, and Ricky should have been found guilty, but ideally there should be consistency between cases. The system has flaws, though, we haven’t found much better ways than jury verdicts, allowing people to plead guilty and differences in legal advice. As one pleaded guilty and one didn’t, it can cause a mismatch in outcome. They were both arrested and charged by the police, so there isn’t any two-tier there. The police or state have no influence over a jury decision and given your views on totalitarian states, I would be surprised if you thought the state having a greater say over court verdicts as a good thing.
