The plea is com­monly used in local and state courts in the United States." Understanding Organized Crime and the RICO Act, The Difference Between Procedural Law and Substantive Law, Overview of the Sentencing Stage in Criminal Cases, The Crimes of Florida Death Row Inmate Tiffany Cole, The Plea Bargain Stage of a Criminal Case, The Murders of Terrance Rankins and Eric Glover. Charles Montaldo is a writer and former licensed private detective who worked with law enforcement and insurance firms investigating crime and fraud. 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. Peterson's case isn't the only high profile one involving an Alford plea. A defendant making an Alford plea maintains his innocence of the offense charged. Alford Plea. The Alford plea gets its name from a 1970 U.S. Supreme Court case, North Carolina v. Alford. The Alford plea unambiguously maintains innocence while a nolo contendre plea simply does not admit guilt. Alford plea. "When confronted with the witness testimony and forensic evidence, he takes what’s called an Alford Plea. Alford Plea. In the law of the United States, an Alford plea (also called a Kennedy plea in West Virginia) is a plea in criminal court. A plea of Nolo Contendere in Georgia is pretty well-known for anyone who is familiar with the Georgia Criminal Process.But the Alford plea in Georgia is must less common.. 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. C.J.S. This plea is not considered compelled within the language of the Fifth Amendment if the plea represents a voluntary, knowing, and intelligent choice between the available options (the defendant — realizing the strength of the prosecution’s evidence and not wanting to risk receiving the death penalty … He was charged with murder, but got off on a plea of insanity. This list of U.S. states by Alford plea usage … Cf.…, Search our termbase for authentic interpretation of 150,000+ legal terms, evidence, n.1. The 4th Circuit Court ruled that the court should have rejected the plea which was involuntary because it was made under fear of the death penalty. The Dic­tio­nary of Pol­i­tics: Se­lected Amer­i­can and For­eign Po­lit­i­cal and Legal Terms de­fines the term "Al­ford plea" as: "A plea under which a de­fen­dant may choose to plead guilty, not be­cause of an ad­mis­sion to the crime, but be­cause the pros­e­cu­tor has suf­fi­cient ev­i­dence to place a charge and to ob­tain con­vic­tion in court. Ac­cord­ing to Uni­ver­sity of Rich­mond Law Re­view, "When of­fer­ing an Al­ford plea, a de­fen­dant as­serts hi… One example is a situation where the defendant has no recollection of the pertinent events due to intoxication or amnesia. Overview of the Jury Trial Stage of a Criminal Case, The Sixth Amendment: Text, Origins, and Meaning, Padilla v. Kentucky: Supreme Court Case, Arguments, Impact, Criminal Justice and Your Constitutional Rights, The Case of Convicted Killer Jeffrey MacDonald. It is the prospect of an ultimate dismissal of charges which engenders most pleas of this type. NO CONTEST . These facts cannot support a plea of diminished responsibility. Alford plea definition: a pleading of guilty in a plea bargain in which the defendant maintains his or her... | Meaning, pronunciation, translations and examples A formal revision or addition proposed or made to a statute, constitution, pleading, order, or other instrument; specif., a…, blind plea. 法律词汇 / ALFORD PLEA. not . In the law of the United States, an Alford plea (also called a Kennedy plea in West Virginia) is a plea in criminal court. A guilty plea made without the promise of a concession from either the judge or the prosecutor. 1970s from the name of Henry C. Alford, appellant in the US Supreme Court case of North Carolina v. Alford (1970), which ruled that such a plea was valid. Main article: Alford 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. ALFORD PLEA. 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. Both are special pleas that defendants or accused persons can use in court. An Alford plea (also referred to as Alford guilty plea and Alford doctrine) in the law of the United States is a guilty plea in criminal court, where the defendant does not admit the act and asserts innocence. Cf. A Barr plea is not the same as an Alford (Newton) plea because the defendant is not explicitly asserting actual innocence. With an Alford plea, the defendant -- typically only with the court's permission -- accepts all the ramifications of a guilty verdict (i.e., punishment) without first attesting to having committed the crime. Although there were no witnesses to the shooting, the evidence strongly indicated that Alford was guilty. And to add to the cruelty of these judges and lawyers, apparently in order to prevent an appeal (as indicated in this blog), the judge makes the defendant declare “I am not taking this plea under pressure or duress”. [fr. Netflix. A man named Henry Alford had been charged with first degree murder and was facing the death penalty. The Court allowed the guilty plea along with a plea of innocence only because there was enough evidence to show that the prosecution had a strong case for a conviction, and the defendant was entering such a plea to avoid this possible sentencing. Presupposition An Alford plea is a plea of ‘guilty’ containing a protestation of innocence Legal definition An interesting aspect of meaning is what is called presupposition. His plea was accepted and he was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Alford later appealed his case to federal court, saying that he was coerced into pleading guilty out of fear of the death penalty. How to use Alford plea in a sentence. Alford plea. A guilty plea that a defendant enters as part of a plea bargain, without actually admitting guilt. 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. 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. Language; Watch; Edit Initial visibility: currently defaults to autocollapse. Language; Watch; Edit; Active discussions ↓ ↓ Skip to table ... → Alford Plea: A plea of guilty that may be accepted by a court even where the defendant does not admit guilt. A judge may accept such a plea only if it is made voluntarily, competently, with an understanding of the nature of the charge and the consequences of the plea, and when the judge is satisfied that there is a factual This plea is not considered compelled within the language of the Fifth Amendment if the plea represents a voluntary, knowing, and intelligent choice between the available options (the defendant — realizing the strength of the prosecution’s evidence and not wanting to risk receiving the death penalty — entered into an Alford plea).North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25, 91 S.Ct. Why might a Barr/Zhao plea be a useful alternative for a noncitizen defendant? Template:Alford plea. [Cases: Criminal Law 273(4.1), 273.1(2). Alford plea definition, a pleading of guilty in a plea bargain in which the defendant maintains his or her innocence. Instead, he accepts that the state’s evidence would convict him in … Because evidence existed that could have supported Alford's conviction, the Supreme Court ruled that his guilty plea was permitted while the defendant himself still maintained that he was not guilty. An Alford plea allows defendant to plead guilty even while unable or unwilling to admit guilt. Legal Definition and Examples, What Is Racketeering? The Alford Plea originated from a 1963 trial in North Carolina. Alford plea definition is - a guilty plea entered by a criminal defendant who does not admit guilt but nevertheless pleads guilty as part of a plea bargain. What Is Double Jeopardy? The Court also noted that even if the defendant could have shown that he would not have entered a guilty plea "but for" the rationale of receiving a lesser sentence, the plea itself would not have been ruled invalid. Alford plea. 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