What is the purpose of an Alford plea?

What is the purpose of an Alford plea?

Like a nolo contendere plea, an Alford plea arrests the full process of criminal trial because 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.

What is an Alford plea in North Carolina?

An Alford plea is a plea option named after the Supreme Court ruling in North Carolina v. Alford, 400 U.S. 25 (1970). This plea allows a defendant to claim to be innocent without taking the risk of going to trial. In other words, an Alford plea is the same as pleading guilty while also claiming to be innocent.

Who was Henry Alford plea?

Henry Alford – indicted for first degree murder in 1963; maintained his innocence but pleaded guilty to second degree murder due to the significance of the evidence. He pleaded guilty to second degree murder so as to avoid the death penalty.

Can you appeal an Alford plea?

Alford Pleas and Appeals: Maintaining Innocence During a Guilty Plea Does NOT Preserve Appellate Rights. The ability to challenge issues on appeal is not unfettered. Certain choices made at the trial level will impact what challenges may be raised on appeal. This applies equally to pleas and trials.

What happened in the Ricketts v Adamson 1987 case?

Conclusion: The United States Supreme Court held that defendant’s breach of the plea agreement between the parties removed the double jeopardy bar to prosecution of defendant on the first-degree murder charges that he faced prior to the plea agreement.

How common are Alford pleas?

Alford pleas, however, are exceptionally rare, composing only 6 percent of all the guilty pleas in state and federal courts, according to a study published in 2009.

Can you sue after an Alford plea?

Once you enter a plea and it is accepted by the judge, the case is over. You cannot later change your mind and you cannot sue for damages. Maybe you do not understand, but an Alford Plea is the same as a guilty plea.

Are Alford pleas rare?

Why was Henry C Alford’s guilty plea involuntary?

The Court of Appeals, on an appeal from a denial of a writ of habeas corpus, found that appellee’s guilty plea was involuntary because it was motivated principally by fear of the death penalty. Held: The trial judge did not commit constitutional error in accepting appellee’s guilty plea. Pp. 31-39.

When was Alford indicted for first degree murder?

On December 2, 1963, Alford was indicted for first-degree murder, a capital offense under North Carolina [400 U.S. 25, 27] law. 1 The court appointed an attorney to represent him, and this attorney questioned all but one of the various witnesses who appellee said would substantiate his claim of innocence.

Why was Alford denied a writ of habeas corpus?

Both courts denied the writ on the basis of the state court’s findings that Alford voluntarily and knowingly agreed to plead guilty. In 1967, Alford again petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus in the District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.

What was the death penalty in North Carolina?

At that time North Carolina law provided for the penalty of life imprisonment when a plea of guilty was accepted to a first-degree murder charge; for the death penalty following a jury verdict of guilty, unless the jury recommended life imprisonment; and for a penalty of from two to 30 years’ imprisonment for second-degree murder.