Talk:Alford plea

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Page used to say it was the same as nolo contendere. How is it different fron _nolo contendere_? 64.168.29.29 06:49, 4 Jan 2005 (UTC)

Has been addressed in the article - a conviction obtained on an Alford plea can be used in subsequent or collateral proceedings, whereas a nolo adjudication cannot. Ellsworth 16:37, 26 Feb 2005 (UTC)

I didn't ever see it addressed in the history. Just wrote a paragraph about it; everyone please add. The comparison is interesting. Tempshill2 17:30, 2 Jun 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Collateral consequences

Cut this sentence:

It is not an admission of guilt, and provides one major advantage to defendants: It may not be used later as the basis for civil proceedings seeking monetary or other damages against the defendant, as can a guilty plea.

This is not uniform in all jurisdictions: some do treat an Alford plea as an admission and do allow its use in civil cases. Ellsworth

[edit] Where allowed

Are there any states where an Alford plea is not accepted? Indiana is one IIRC...Ellsworth 20:50, 5 Mar 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Q:Why plea Alford instead of guilty?

So what are the advantages of an Alford plea instead of a guilty plea? I guess one of the comments above indicates that it's not always better in terms of civil proceedings, but where it is, that's the advantage, right? Are there no other advantages? -- Creidieki 22:11, 18 August 2005 (UTC)

The advantage is that it allows the defendant to maintain his innocence. Some defendants are willing to accept the conviction or do probation or some jail time to avoid the risk of much more jail time after a trial, but they don't want to admit to something they didn't do. There's often little legal difference between this and a regular guilty plea, but it makes the defendant feel better. PaulGS 01:19, 7 August 2006 (UTC)

You have a choice: go to trial on a second degree felony for which you'll probably be convicted, at a cost of $us50,000 and five to ten years, the appeal will cost upwards of $us250,000 and probably fail -- or take an Alford plea to a fifth degree misdemeanor, do a year of probation, have the case dismissed, cost $us5,000. 24.118.190.206 07:18, 29 December 2006 (UTC)

Or the other choice, to plead guilty to the offer of the misdemeanor. The question wasn't "what's the advantage of a plea bargain", but "why an Alford plea instead of plain guilty"? And I have no idea where you got your figures from. Most lawyers don't charge anywhere near that much, and if you can't afford one, you get one for free. But the answer, as I mentioned above, is that there's little legal difference, but it makes the defendant feel better that he doesn't have to admit to it. PaulGS 05:34, 8 March 2007 (UTC)

There was no offer to plead guilty to the misdemeanor; the free public defender wanted the person above to plead guilty to the felony. The private lawyer who negotiated the deal was paid ~1,000; the rest was various court fees, bail, ... the goal was to preserve his firearms rights.

htom 05:52, 8 March 2007 (UTC)