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In the law of the United States, an Alford plea is a plea in criminal court. In this plea, the defendant does not admit the act and asserts innocence, but admits that sufficient evidence exists with which the prosecution could likely convince a judge or jury to find the defendant guilty. Upon receiving an Alford plea from a defendant, the court may immediately pronounce the defendant guilty and impose sentence as if the defendant had otherwise been convicted of the crime; however, in many states, such as Massachusetts, a plea which "admits sufficient facts" more typically results in the case being continued without a finding and later dismissed. It is the prospect of an ultimate dismissal of charges which engenders most pleas of this type. Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ...
Criminal procedure refers to the legal process for adjudicating claims that someone has violated the criminal law. ...
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In United States criminal law, probable cause refers to the standard by which a police officer may make an arrest, conduct a personal or property search or obtain a warrant. ...
Knock-and-announce, in United States law of criminal procedure, is an ancient common-law principle which requires law enforcement officers to announce their presence and provide residents with an opportunity to open the door to the residence when conducting a search. ...
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The Miranda warning is a police warning that is given to criminal suspects in police custody or in a custodial situation in the United States before they are asked questions relating to the commission of a crime. ...
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In legal terminology, a plea is simply an answer to a claim made by someone in a civil or criminal case under common law using the adversary system. ...
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In criminal trials in some common law jurisdictions, a plea of nolo contendere means that the defendant neither admits nor disputes the charge, and is an alternative to pleading guilty or not guilty. ...
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In legal terminology, a plea is simply an answer to a claim made by someone in a civil or criminal case under common law using the adversary system. ...
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The Alford plea differs slightly from the nolo contendere ("no contest") plea. An Alford plea is simply a form of a guilty plea, and, as with other guilty pleas, the judge must see there is some factual basis for the plea. Therefore, a defendant's prior conviction via an Alford plea can be considered in future trials; and it will count as a "strike" if a three strikes law applies. On the other hand, a nolo contendere plea is in no way an admission of guilt, and it cannot be introduced in future trials as evidence of incorrigibility. Nevertheless, courts do not have to accept a plea of nolo contendere, and usually do not, except in certain nonviolent cases. In criminal trials in some common law jurisdictions, a plea of nolo contendere means that the defendant neither admits nor disputes the charge, and is an alternative to pleading guilty or not guilty. ...
Three strikes laws are statutes enacted by state governments in the United States which require the state courts to hand down a mandatory and extended period of incarceration to persons who have been convicted of a serious criminal offense on three or more separate occasions. ...
This plea originated in the United States Supreme Court case of North Carolina v. Alford (1970), 400 US 25. Under subsequent case law, an Alford plea generally has the same effect as a plea of guilty with respect to sentencing, and use of the conviction as an aggravating factor if the defendant is later convicted of another offense. Federal courts Supreme Court Chief Justice Associate Justices Elections Presidential elections Midterm elections Political Parties Democratic Republican Third parties State & Local government Governors Legislatures (List) State Courts Counties, Cities, and Towns Other countries Politics Portal The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest judicial body in the...
North Carolina v. ...
1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday. ...
Some critics have spoken out against the nolo contendere and Alford pleas on the moral grounds that they undermine public confidence in the accuracy and fairness of the criminal justice system, sending some people to jail who are unrepentant or innocent; and that they dodge the "morality play" aspect of a criminal trial, in which upright civilization is vindicated and the community sees that the guilty are punished. In addition, critics of the Alford plea claim it contradicts the pleas originally established in the judicial system; most notably, Justice Scalia recently denounced this type of plea in Georgia v. Harkinson (2006). Others see this as the major benefit of these pleas. For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...
References
- [1] Harmonizing Substantive Criminal Law Values and Criminal Procedure: The Case of Alford and Nolo Contendere Pleas, originally published in the Cornell Law Review, Volume 88, Number 6, July 2003
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