Solicitor: Tappin's guilty plea 'should come as no surprise'

Ninety eight percent of people who enter the US Justice system enter into a plea agreement.

The odds are so heavily stacked against a defendant who chooses to plead not guilty and then is subsequently found guilty that the vast majority of people facing trial in the US opt to take a plea agreement. Therefore this decision should come as no surprise.

In addition the US Prosecutor has within his discretion the decision as to whether any custodial sentence can be served in the UK. If the US prosecutor declares following a conviction, that repatriation should not tkane place then it is almost impossible to obtain.

Lastly the legal fees in defending a case in the US are extremely expensive.

I hope that following this decision to enter into a plea agreement Mr Tappin will be able to return to the UK as soon as possible to rejoin his family.