Answer to Question 1
a
Answer to Question 2
There are so many similarities between these two processes it would be easy for someone to make a wrong choice at the plea bargain stage. If you elect to plea to the charge in exchange for probation, you will end up with the charge on your record after probation. If you violate the conditions of probation, you face the possibility of spending the rest of the sentence in custody (what the predetermined sentence was, but no more). If you choose to have your prosecution deferred, you could possibly complete the requirements of the agreement and end up with no criminal record. However, if you fail to satisfy the agreement, the judge has discretion on how long you could spend incarcerated since there was no prior agreement. If you really did learn your lesson from the arrest and plan to stay out of trouble, it would be logical to accept a deferred agreement and avoid the charge on your criminal record.