Why do defendants plead not guilty

If a Defendant rushed into a guilty plea and did not have an attorney review their case, prior to entering a guilty plea, they could be looking at harsher punishments that the law requires. The purpose of our criminal process is geared toward giving a fair punishment to all defendants, which means that a quick decision is rarely going to reach the fairest result.

Even if an individual did commit a crime, there are times that other information changes how we view that crime. Entering a not guilty plea and allowing legal counsel to investigate and present mitigating information can be crucial in arriving at the correct result.

Even after I explained it, will it still make you mad when defendants in high profile cases plead not guilty? Why do obviously guilty defendants plead not guilty? Connect Facebook. Moreover, before accepting guilty pleas, judges have to be sure that defendants are aware of the rights they are giving up by pleading guilty.

For a "knowing and intelligent" guilty plea to be made, defendants have to:. Defendants should also know that, if they are not U. Defendants are competent to waive counsel and plead guilty as long as they are capable of understanding the proceedings Godinez v. Moran , U. In some courts, defendants who are pleading guilty are asked to fill in or sign a form waiving their rights. Usually the judge asks the defendant a fairly long list of questions to determine whether the plea is knowing and intelligent.

For their part, defendants normally follow their attorneys' advice and avoid upsetting the plea bargaining apple cart by quietly answering "yes" to all the judge's questions. Assuming the defendants' answers are satisfactory, judges typically accept the deal. In some cases, a judge may consult with the crime victim, ask a probation officer to prepare a presentence report , and listen to arguments from both the defense and prosecution before making sentencing decisions.

Reback, Mr. Reback, how do you plead? The people have agreed to time served and probation, as long as Mr. Reback completes an approved anger management course. Reback, do you know that by pleading guilty you lose the right to a jury trial? Reback, you are hereby sentenced to 12 hours in jail, which you have already served, and to two years' probation, on condition that you complete a court-approved anger management course. If a defendant entered into a plea without counsel and did not appear, from a later review of the record, to have made a knowing and intelligent plea, that defendant may have grounds to request that the conviction be stricken removed from the defendant's record, or at least not be considered in any future proceedings.

Striking prior convictions can be important because offenders tend to be sentenced more severely with each repeat offense. However, even if a defendant did not have counsel or waived counsel before pleading guilty, the conviction may later be used to make future sentences more severe, unless the defendant was incarcerated after the plea was entered Nichols v.

Berman, J. The information provided on this site is not legal advice, does not constitute a lawyer referral service, and no attorney-client or confidential relationship is or will be formed by use of the site.

The attorney listings on this site are paid attorney advertising. In some states, the information on this website may be considered a lawyer referral service. Defendants often plead "not guilty" at the start. Here are some reasons why defendants initially plead "not guilty. Many defendants don't have anyone representing them to start.

They haven't received any qualified legal advice. For example, a defendant hasn't heard from a lawyer about potential defenses or errors by the police or prosecution, or the tendencies of different judges and prosecutors.

No discovery. Oftentimes, defendants haven't received any discovery by the time they're asked to plead. The police report is usually the most important part of discovery in the early going. Without it, defendants may have little idea of the strength of the evidence against them. And even with the police report, but without further discovery like photographs, recordings, and more and investigation including consultation with experts , the defendant still might not know the strength of the prosecution's case.

Police reports often contain limited information—they also can include misinformation, whether due to intentional deception or error by officers or witnesses. No promises. With some exceptions, defendants who plead guilty early on don't know what the sentence will be. The point of plea bargaining —which often occurs after initial appearances or arraignments—is to receive some kind of benefit in exchange for a guilty or no-contest plea.

Without having a lawyer who has negotiated with the prosecution, a defendant who pleads guilty can be subject to the whim of prosecutors and judges. Uncertain consequences. Particularly without representation, people who've been accused of crime aren't immediately aware of potential consequences of conviction.

Even if the court technically advises them that they will, for example, lose their drivers' licenses or have to register as sex offenders, they may not fully understand. Plus, there are consequences to conviction that the court might not explain, such as loss of a job, endangerment of a professional license, or a harmful result in another legal proceeding for example, a presumption against child custody for someone convicted of domestic violence.