The writer didn't say that. > The American legal system found a less expensive alternative. Like its medieval predecessor, it substituted confession for trial.

The writer didn't say that. > The American legal system found a less expensive alternative. Like its medieval predecessor, it substituted confession for trial. The medieval confession was motivated by the threat of torture. The modern version, a plea bargain, is motivated by the threat of a much more severe sentence if the defendant insists on a trial and is convicted.