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Legal Advice on Accepting
a Plea
In a
courtroom, when a defendant is asked to plea guilty or innocent, the
judge is the ruling officer who determines if the plea is acceptable. For
example, in a trial where a man was charged of Capital Murder, the man
may have originally plead guilty, but may later–in court--profess
his innocence, claiming threats from legal representatives were made
against him. The judge then was responsible to determine if the
accusations were in fact true; and if the substantial evidence pending against
the defendant was sufficient to accept the plea of guilt.
Thus, few judges may
accept the plea if the judge feels it is not necessary for a jury or the
public to hear the details of the case. The defendant then appears in
court and may be offered a plea bargain, or in some cases no plea
bargaining is offered. Thus, this man made the biggest mistake of his
life, since he professed his innocence while pleading guilty of the
charge. Facing the death penalty, the man is standing between the law and
God, and praying that the higher source will come through for him. (Check
the Alford Case for more details, and Steinberger
1985)
Pleas are accepted
then by the residing judge in the courtroom. If you are accused of a
crime–no matter how minor it may seem--it is important to learn
more about pleas, since pleas are what determine your appearance. If you
are innocent of a crime, regardless of threats coming from legal representations,
do not plea guilty. Rather, force the courts to weigh out the evidence in
a public court to determine your guilt. Remember, the laws work in
reverse. When the courts says you are innocent until guilt is proven
beyond a doubt, what the courts are really saying is you are guilty until
innocence is proven beyond a doubt.
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