A plea bargain is not what was needed here; the case was too high profile and the judgement handed down is sending the wrong signal! That boy has gotten off far too lightly!
Female batterers get a slap on the wrist like - don't do that again ... for the umpteenth time when they appear in court. And therein lies the problem. The police and judicial system as a whole do not consider violence against women to be outrageous, which is what it is!