Do I smell some funny business goin' on?

I don't watch Law and Order, so I know next to nothing about our legal system, my rights, or even the name for the mallet thingy the guy in the robe holds. So can someone please explain this latest Vick development to me, preferably as you would to a child? I'm looking at you, law school boy (Mike), and also at you, Mr. I Have a Degree in Criminology *Vinnie chortles* (Matt).

Are plea bargains inherently shady? Would it be as easy to set up a targeted defendant as it seems to an unlearned dum-dum like me? I ask because I sense that Vick has been double-crossed by his co-defendants and, potentially, by law enforcement involved in the case.

This is essentially what I'm trying to figure out: In a case like this one where there's a high-profile defendant and a few Joe Scumbum co-defendants, what's to stop the powers that be (aside: I love that term because it's such a fantastic cop-out when I don't know who the hell I'm actually talking about) from giving the co-defendants a sweeter-than-usual plea bargain in order to get their cooperation early on, forcing the high-profile defendant from caving or facing an unwinable trial? Had Vick been the first to accept a plea bargain for some reason, would he have gotten a deal on par with those he co-defendants received?

Answers guys, answers.

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