As I (a dutchman) understand US law a plea bargain is only that. A bargain that has the prosecution make a plea to the judge. The judge, however, is free to ig

As I (a dutchman) understand US law a plea bargain is only that. A bargain that has the prosecution make a plea to the judge. The judge, however, is free to ignore that plea. There is no guarantee whatsoever that a judge will follow the recommendation in the plea. He/She could still have thrown the book at Swartz.