307:(also known as a "best interest plea"). An Alford plea allows a criminal defendant to formally record an admission of guilt for the charges, yet—at the same time— declare their innocence regarding those charges. Under an Alford plea, the defendant agrees to accept all the consequences of a guilty verdict—such as accepting punishment. An Alford plea bypasses the full process of a criminal trial. The primary distinction between an Alford plea and a
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552:
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A no contest plea prevents the court from eliciting a defendant's admission of guilt, but the result of the defendant's plea not to contest the charges against him or her is the same as if the defendant had admitted guilt. If a defendant pleads no contest to a charged offense, with the exception of
440:
plea may be appropriate "where the defendant would not be able to supply a sufficient factual basis for a guilty plea because he or she was intoxicated on the night of the incident, where there is the possibility of future civil litigation resulting from the offense, or where a defendant cannot
287:
prohibition if offered as an "admission by party-opponent". Assuming the appropriate gravity of the charge, and all other things being equal, a guilty plea to the same charge would cause the reverse effect: An opponent at trial could introduce the plea, over a hearsay objection, as evidence to
360:
the criminal defendant from denying any element in a subsequent civil action against him that was necessarily established by the conviction, as long as the prior conviction was for a serious criminal offense and the defendant in fact had the opportunity for a full and fair hearing".
236:
plea is subject to any and all penalties, fines, and forfeitures of a conviction from a guilty plea in the same case, and can be considered as an aggravating factor in future criminal actions. However, unlike a guilty plea, a defendant in a
445:
questioning the defendant about his or her role in the charged offense, the court must proceed in the same manner as if the defendant had pleaded guilty. A plea of no contest to a felony offense requires the court's consent.
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plea, the defendant does not assert innocence or guilt. A formal admission of guilt under an Alford plea can be used against the defendant in future civil suits, whereas nolo contendere pleas cannot.
1028:
436:
plea does not admit guilt, it merely communicates to the court that the criminal defendant does not wish to contest the state's accusations and will acquiesce in the imposition of punishment." A
204:
plea to be entered with the court's consent; before accepting the plea, the court is required to "consider the parties' views and the public interest in the effective administration of justice".
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plea to any felony is considered exactly equivalent to a guilty plea for the purposes of civil actions; this plea to any non-felony is not admissible to a civil action.
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812:
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is not permitted. The defendant must enter a plea of "guilty" or "not guilty". If a defendant refuses to enter a plea, the court will record a plea of "not guilty".
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In the United States, state law determines whether, and under what circumstances, a defendant may plead no contest in state criminal cases. In federal court, the
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607:
841:
1282:
193:
138:. A no-contest plea means that defendants refuse to admit guilt but accept punishment as if guilty, and is often offered as a part of a
268:, or whether the acts were committed at all in later civil proceedings related to the same set of facts as the criminal prosecution.
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The plea is recognized in United States federal criminal courts, and many state criminal courts. In many jurisdictions, a plea of
1414:
1309:
629:
915:"The South Carolina Code of Laws, Unannotated: Title 17 - Criminal Procedure, Chapter 23, Pleading and Trial, Section 17-23-40"
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with the consent of the court. The plea of guilty will be recorded on defendant records and will not affect sentencing.
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may only appeal the judgment of the court if the appeal is based on written pretrial motions ruled upon by the court.
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held in 2005 that no-contest convictions may be treated as prior convictions for the purposes of future sentencing.
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to be deemed a conviction with regard to issuing licenses for pharmacies, pharmacists and drug wholesalers.
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110:) is a type of legal plea used in some jurisdictions in the United States. It is also referred to as a
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that defendant from denying responsibility in a later civil action arising from the same conduct.
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plea is that, in an Alford plea, the defendant pleads guilty (in a formal sense) yet in a
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991:"Different State jurisdictions govern the plea process through their own legislation"
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code, the defendant in any misdemeanor case in any of the courts may enter a plea of
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effects or consequences in future actions. For instance, a conviction arising from a
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588:"Harmonizing Substantive Criminal Law Values and Criminal Procedure: The Case of
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ruled in 2006 that a "conviction based on a no contest plea will collaterally
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plea entered in a criminal case is admissible in a related civil proceeding.
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Plea of "no contest" where the defendant neither admits nor disputes a charge
815:. California Legislative Information, State of California. 28 September 1998
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770:"Drunk driver who pled no contest can't relitigate issue of recklessness"
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remember the events which led to his or her being charged with a crime".
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532:—such as England and Wales, Scotland, Canada, and Australia—the plea of
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or "guilty" is highly restricted. Defendants who have entered a plea of
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1055:
963:
786:
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284:
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389:(1970) 3 Cal.3d 595. The state Board of Pharmacy considers a plea of
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813:"TITLE 6. PLEADINGS AND PROCEEDINGS BEFORE TRIAL ~ CHAPTER 4. Plea"
512:
Rules of
Evidence differ from the parallel federal rules in that a
477:
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1A Gillespie
Michigan Criminal Law & Procedure, § 16:15.
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A defendant's no contest plea to criminal charges does not
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717:"United States Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 801(d)(2)"
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conviction typically may not be used to establish either
690:"United States Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 803(22)"
660:"United States Federal Rules of Evidence, Rule 410(2)"
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effects as a plea of guilty, but may have different
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939:"Texas Rules of Appellate Procedure, Rule 25.2(a)"
348:plea may be used against the defendant in future
30:"No contest" redirects here. For other uses, see
630:"Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure - Rule 11"
787:"Lamb v. Anderson No. 6078 (S-11936), P3d 736"
385:after a seminal case involving plea bargains,
157:and carries various restrictions on its use.
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776:, December 18, 2006, retrieved April 22, 2010
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789:. Alaska Supreme Court. 17 November 2006.
866:Lichon v American Universal Insurance Co.
840:. Florida Supreme Court. 17 March 2005.
578:
480:, the right to appeal the results of a
169:phrase for "I do not wish to contend" (
610:from the original on 27 September 2021
793:from the original on 30 December 2008
723:from the original on 25 November 2011
696:from the original on 25 November 2011
666:from the original on 25 November 2011
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7:
740:
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283:pleas may not be used to defeat the
340:, a criminal conviction based on a
194:Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure
847:from the original on 20 March 2009
25:
1341:Evidence law in the United States
970:from the original on 15 June 2023
750:LII / Legal Information Institute
1148:
835:"Sheldon Montgomery vs. Florida"
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51:
249:the charges. This means that a
1195:Deferred prosecution agreement
919:The South Carolina Legislature
126:neither admits nor disputes a
1:
715:Legal Information Institute.
688:Legal Information Institute.
658:Legal Information Institute.
998:Division 3 Sections 146 146A
586:Stephano Bibas (July 2003).
484:taken from a plea of either
245:plea may not be required to
181:[ˈnoːɫoːkɔnˈtɛndɛrɛ]
868:, 435 Mich 408, 417 (1990).
32:No contest (disambiguation)
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288:establish a certain fact.
122:. It is a plea where the
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29:
1354:
1310:Presentence investigation
1143:
292:Compared with Alford plea
273:Federal Rules of Evidence
944:. Supreme Court of Texas
904:Lichon, 435 Mich at 417.
37:Not to be confused with
1415:Latin legal terminology
989:David J. Wills (2007).
1252:Statute of limitations
1047:Criminal investigation
719:. Cornell Law School.
692:. Cornell Law School.
662:. Cornell Law School.
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1190:Criminal jurisdiction
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1167:Criminal prosecution
1107:Reasonable suspicion
1082:Exigent circumstance
354:Alaska Supreme Court
177:Latin pronunciation:
165:originated from the
1247:Preliminary hearing
636:on 29 November 2011
381:plea is known as a
1175:Adversarial system
1117:Search and seizure
1087:Knock-and-announce
1038:Criminal procedure
964:"Code of Virginia"
600:Cornell Law Review
220:plea has the same
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1396:
1379:Wikimedia Commons
1326:Criminal defenses
1261:Charges and pleas
1185:Bill of attainder
1122:Search of persons
327:Individual states
153:is not a typical
16:(Redirected from
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1112:Right to silence
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1295:Peremptory plea
1289:Nolo contendere
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1097:Pretextual stop
1092:Miranda warning
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172:nōlō contendere
161:Nolo contendere
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746:"Alford plea"
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1242:Precognition
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997:
984:
972:. Retrieved
958:
946:. Retrieved
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922:, retrieved
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849:. Retrieved
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795:. Retrieved
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774:All Business
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668:. Retrieved
638:. Retrieved
634:the original
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612:. Retrieved
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119:
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1389:Wikiversity
1346:Legal abuse
1283:Information
1273:Arraignment
1268:Alford plea
1208:Extradition
924:3 September
886:MCL 767.37.
851:31 December
797:31 December
305:Alford plea
259:negligence
39:Alford plea
1404:Categories
1374:WikiSource
1359:Wiktionary
1278:Indictment
1225:Indictment
1213:Grand jury
1156:Law portal
1137:Terry stop
574:References
558:Law portal
371:California
365:California
271:Under the
136:not guilty
120:no defense
116:no contest
1369:Wikiquote
1364:Wikibooks
1077:Detention
383:West plea
222:immediate
124:defendant
1384:Wikinews
1336:Evidence
968:Archived
948:16 April
842:Archived
819:29 April
791:Archived
755:19 March
727:22 April
721:Archived
700:22 April
694:Archived
670:22 April
664:Archived
608:Archived
544:See also
510:Virginia
504:Virginia
430:Michigan
424:Michigan
247:allocute
226:residual
1132:Suspect
1056:Arguido
974:15 June
640:27 June
528:In the
414:Florida
408:Florida
285:hearsay
1062:Arrest
614:10 May
596:Pleas"
590:Alford
416:, the
352:. The
338:Alaska
332:Alaska
266:malice
261:per se
132:guilty
128:charge
1410:Pleas
994:(PDF)
942:(PDF)
845:(PDF)
838:(PDF)
606:(6).
478:Texas
472:Texas
450:estop
432:, "A
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