View source for Alford plea

{{Short description|Type of guilty plea in the United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2018}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2018}}
{{distinguish|Nolo contendere}}

In [[Law of the United States|United States law]], an '''Alford plea''', also called a '''Kennedy plea''' in West Virginia,<ref>{{cite court |litigants= Kennedy v. Frazier, 178 W.Va. 10, 357 S.E.2d 43 (1987).|quote=An accused may voluntarily, knowingly and understandingly consent to the imposition of a prison sentence even though he is unwilling to admit participation in the crime, if he intelligently concludes that his interests require a guilty plea and the record supports the conclusion that a jury could convict him.}}</ref> an '''Alford guilty plea''',<ref>{{cite journal | last=Shepherd | first=Robert E. Jr. | title =Annual Survey of Virginia Law Article: Legal issues involving children | journal =[[University of Richmond Law Review]] | volume =34 | page =939 | publisher =[[University of Richmond Law Review Association]] | date =November 2000 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | author = <!-- none, just the journal -->| title =Regular Features: Discipline Corner: Disbarment follows four years of disciplinary action against Kalispell lawyer | journal =The Montana Lawyer | volume =23 | page =23 | publisher =State Bar of Montana | date =February 1998 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last =Huff | first =C. Ronald |author2=Martin Killias | title =Wrongful Conviction | publisher =[[Temple University]] Press | year =2008 | pages =143, 289 | isbn =978-1-59213-645-2 }}</ref> and the '''Alford doctrine''',<ref name="daly">{{cite book | last =Daly | first =Kathleen | title =Gender, Crime, and Punishment | publisher =[[Yale University Press]] | year =1996 | page =20 | isbn =0-300-06866-2 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last =Thompson | first =Norma | title =Unreasonable Doubt | publisher =[[University of Missouri]] Press | year =2006 | page =[https://archive.org/details/unreasonabledoub0000thom/page/38 38] | isbn =0-8262-1638-2 | url =https://archive.org/details/unreasonabledoub0000thom/page/38 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last =Neighbors | first = Ira |author2=Anne Chambers |author3=Ellen Levin |author4=Gila Nordman |author5=Cynthia Tutrone | title =Social Work and the Law | publisher =Routledge | year =2002 | page =18 | isbn =978-0-7890-1548-8}}</ref> is a [[Guilt (law)|guilty]] [[plea]] in [[Criminal justice|criminal court]],<ref name="scheb" /><ref name="anderson" /><ref name="wild" /> whereby a [[defendant]] in a [[Criminal procedure|criminal case]] does not admit to the criminal act and asserts [[innocence]], but accepts imposition of a sentence.<ref name="bibas">{{cite journal | last = Bibas | first = Stephanos | year = 2003 | title = Harmonizing Substantive Criminal Law Values and Criminal Procedure: The Case of ''Alford'' and Nolo Contendere Pleas | journal = Cornell Law Review | volume = 88 | issue = 6 | doi = 10.2139/ssrn.348681 | url = https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/plea/four/nolo.html }}</ref><ref name="champion">{{cite book | last =Champion | first =Dean J. | title =Dictionary of American Criminal Justice: Key Terms and Major Supreme Court Cases | publisher =[[Routledge]] | year =1998 | page =[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofamer0000cham/page/7 7] | isbn =1-57958-073-4 | url =https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofamer0000cham/page/7 }}</ref><ref name="gardner">{{cite book | last =Gardner | first =Thomas J. |author2=Terry M. Anderson | title =Criminal Evidence: Principles and Cases | publisher =[[Wadsworth Publishing]] | year =2009 | page =50 | isbn =978-0-495-59924-1 }}</ref> This plea is allowed even if the [[evidence]] to be presented by the prosecution would be likely to persuade a judge or jury to find the defendant guilty beyond a [[reasonable doubt]].<ref name="daly" /><ref name="fisher" /><ref name="davidson">{{cite book | last =Davidson | first =Michael J. | title =A Guide to Military Criminal Law | publisher =[[United States Naval Institute|US Naval Institute Press]] | year =1999 | page =56 | isbn =1-55750-155-6 }}</ref><ref name="raymond">{{cite book | last =Raymond | first =Walter John | title =Dictionary of Politics: Selected American and Foreign Political and Legal Terms | publisher =Brunswick Publishing Corporation | year =1992 | page =[https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofpoli0000raym/page/9 9] | isbn =978-1-55618-008-8 | url =https://archive.org/details/dictionaryofpoli0000raym/page/9 }}</ref><ref name="judge">{{cite journal | last =Judge | first =Michael T. |author2=Stephen R. McCullough | title =Criminal law and procedure | journal =[[University of Richmond Law Review]] | volume =44 | page =339 | publisher =[[University of Richmond Law Review Association]] | date =November 2009 }}</ref> This can be caused by [[circumstantial evidence]] and testimony favoring the prosecution, and difficulty finding evidence and witnesses that would aid the defense.

Alford pleas are legally permissible in [[List of U.S. states by Alford plea usage|nearly all U.S. federal and state courts]], except in the state courts of [[Indiana]], [[Michigan]], and [[New Jersey]], or in the [[United States military courts]].

== Origin ==
{{main|1=North Carolina v. Alford|l1=''North Carolina v. Alford''}}
The ''Alford'' guilty plea is named after the [[Supreme Court of the United States|United States Supreme Court]] case of ''[[North Carolina v. Alford]]'' (1970).<ref name="wild" /><ref name="champion" /> Henry Alford had been [[indictment|indicted]] on a charge of [[first-degree murder]] in 1963. Evidence in the case included testimony from witnesses that Alford himself had said, after the victim's death, that he had killed the individual. Court testimony showed that Alford and the victim had argued at the victim's house. Alford left the house, and afterward, the victim received a fatal gunshot wound when he opened the door responding to a knock.<ref name="walburn" />

Alford was faced with the possibility of [[capital punishment]] if convicted in a [[jury trial]].<ref name="solgan" /> The death penalty was the default sentence in [[North Carolina]] at the time if two criteria were satisfied: the defendant had to have pleaded not guilty, and the jury did not instead recommend a [[life sentence]]. Had Alford pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, he would have had the possibility of a life sentence and would have avoided the death penalty, but he did not want to admit guilt. Nonetheless, Alford pleaded guilty to [[Murder (United States law)#Degrees|second-degree murder]] and said he was doing so to avoid a death sentence, were he to be convicted of first-degree murder after attempting to contest that charge.<ref name="walburn" /><ref name="feinman">{{cite book | last =Feinman | first =Jay M. | title =Law 101: Everything You Need to Know about the American Legal System | publisher =[[Oxford University Press, USA]] | year =2006 | page =[https://archive.org/details/law10100fein/page/327 327] | isbn =0-19-517957-9 | url =https://archive.org/details/law10100fein/page/327 }}</ref> Alford was sentenced to 30 years in prison after the trial judge accepted the plea bargain and ruled that the defendant had been adequately advised by his lawyer.<ref name="walburn" />

Alford appealed and requested a new trial, arguing he was forced into a guilty plea because he was afraid of receiving a death sentence. The [[Supreme Court of North Carolina]] ruled that the defendant had voluntarily entered the guilty plea with knowledge of what that meant. Following this ruling, Alford petitioned for a writ of ''[[habeas corpus]]'' in the [[United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina]], which upheld the initial ruling, and subsequently to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit]], which ruled that Alford's plea was not voluntary because it was made under fear of the death penalty.<ref name="walburn" /> "I just pleaded guilty because they said if I didn't, they would gas me for it," wrote Alford in one of his appeals.<ref name="barksdale" />

[[File:Justice White Official.jpg|thumb|left|Supreme Court Justice [[Byron White]] wrote the decision for the majority.]]
The case was then appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, where Justice [[Byron White]] wrote the majority decision.<ref name="acker">{{cite book | last =Acker | first =James R. |author2=David C. Brody | title =Criminal Procedure: A Contemporary Perspective | publisher =Jones & Bartlett Publishers | year =2004 | pages =485–488 | isbn = 0-7637-3169-2}}</ref> The Court held that for the plea to be accepted, the defendant must have been advised by a competent lawyer who could inform him that his best option was to enter a guilty plea.<ref name="solgan">{{cite journal | last =Solgan | first =Christopher | title =Life or Death: The Voluntariness of Guilty Pleas by Capital Defendants and the New York Perspective | journal =New York Law School Journal of Human Rights | volume =16 | page =699 | publisher =[[New York Law School]] | date =Spring 2000 }}</ref> The Court ruled that the defendant can enter such a plea "when he concludes that his interests require a guilty plea and the record strongly indicates guilt."<ref name="barksdale" /> The Court allowed the guilty plea with a simultaneous protestation of innocence only because there was enough evidence to show that the prosecution had a strong case for conviction and that the defendant was entering such a plea to avoid the possible sentence. The Court 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.<ref name="solgan" /> As evidence existed that could have supported Alford's conviction, the Supreme Court held that his guilty plea was allowable, while the defendant himself still maintained that he was not guilty.<ref name="feinman" />

Alford died in prison in 1975.<ref name="google">{{cite book|title=Forensic Victimology: Examining Violent Crime Victims in Investigative and Legal Contexts|author=Turvey, B.E.|date=2013|publisher=Elsevier Science|isbn=978-0-12-407920-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8vEfd-lQBqkC&pg=PA600|page=600|access-date=2017-01-06}}</ref>

== Definition ==
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. The plea is commonly used in local and state courts in the United States."<ref name="raymond" /> According to ''[[University of Richmond Law Review]]'', "When offering an Alford plea, a defendant asserts his innocence but admits that sufficient evidence exists to convict him of the offense."<ref name="judge" /> ''A Guide to Military Criminal Law'' notes that under the Alford plea, "the defendant concedes that the prosecution has enough evidence to convict, but the defendant still refuses to admit guilt."<ref name="davidson" /> The book ''Plea Bargaining's Triumph: A History of Plea Bargaining in America'' published by [[Stanford University Press]] defines the plea as one in "which the defendant adheres to his/her claim of innocence even while allowing that the government has enough evidence to prove his/her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt".<ref name="fisher" /> According to the book ''Gender, Crime, and Punishment'' published by [[Yale University Press]], "Under the Alford doctrine, a defendant does not admit guilt but admits that the state has sufficient evidence to find him or her guilty, should the case go to trial."<ref name="daly" /> ''Webster's New World Law Dictionary'' defines Alford plea as: "A guilty plea entered as part of a plea bargain by a criminal defendant who denies committing the crime or who does not actually admit his guilt. In federal courts, such plea may be accepted as long as there is evidence that the defendant is actually guilty."<ref name="wild" />

The Alford guilty plea is "a plea of guilty containing a protestation of innocence".<ref name="scheb">{{cite book | last =Scheb | first =John | title =Criminal Procedure | publisher =[[Wadsworth Publishing]] | year =2008 | page =148 | isbn = 978-0-495-50386-6}}</ref> The defendant pleads guilty, but does not have to specifically admit to the guilt itself.<ref name="raum">{{cite journal | last =Raum | first =Michael S. |author2=Jeffrey L. Skaare | title =Encouraging Abandonment: The Trend Towards Allowing Parents to Drop Off Unwanted Newborns | journal =North Dakota Law Review | volume =76 | page =511 | publisher =[[University of North Dakota]] | year =2000}}</ref> The defendant maintains a claim of innocence, but agrees to the entry of a conviction in the charged crime.<ref name="mueller">{{cite book | last =Mueller | first =Christopher B. |author2=Laird C. Kirkpatrick | title =Evidence: Practice Under the Rules | publisher =[[Aspen Publishers]] | year =1999 | page =759 | isbn = 0-7355-0447-4}}</ref> Upon receiving an Alford guilty plea from a defendant, the court may immediately pronounce the defendant guilty and impose [[sentence (law)|sentence]] as if the defendant had otherwise been convicted of the crime.<ref name="gardner" /> Sources disagree, as may differing states' laws, as to what category of plea the ''Alford'' plea falls under: Some sources state that the Alford guilty plea is a form of ''[[nolo contendere]]'', where the defendant in the case states "no contest" to the factual matter of the case as given in the charges outlined by the prosecution.<ref name="champion" /> Others hold that an ''Alford'' plea is simply one form of a guilty plea,<ref name="anderson">{{cite book | last =Anderson | first =James F. | title =Criminal Justice and Criminology: Concepts and Terms | publisher =[[University Press of America]] | year =2002 | page =7 | isbn = 0-7618-2224-0}}</ref><ref name="wild">{{cite book | last =Wild | first =Susan Ellis | title =Webster's New World Law Dictionary | publisher =[[Webster's New World Dictionary|Webster's New World]] | year =2006 | page =21 | isbn = 0-7645-4210-9}}</ref> and, as with other guilty pleas, the judge must see there is some factual basis for the plea.<ref name="gardner" />

Defendants can take advantage of the ability to use the Alford guilty plea by admitting there is enough evidence to convict them of a more serious crime, while at the same time pleading guilty to a lesser charge.<ref name="duff">{{cite book | last =Duff | first =Antony | title =The Trial on Trial, Volume One: Truth and Due Process | publisher =Hart Publishing | year =2004 | page =58 | isbn =1-84113-442-2 }}</ref> Defendants usually enter an Alford guilty plea if they want to avoid a possibly worse sentence were they to lose the case against them at trial.<ref name="gardner" /> It affords defendants the ability to accept a [[plea bargain]] while maintaining innocence.<ref name="marguis">{{cite journal | last =Marquis | first =Joshua | title =Symposium: Innocence in Capital Sentencing: Article: The Myth of Innocence | journal =Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology | volume =95 | page =501 | publisher =[[Northwestern University School of Law|Northwestern School of Law]] | date =Winter 2005 }}</ref>

== Court and government use ==
{{Further|List of U.S. states by Alford plea usage}}
This form of guilty plea has been frequently used in local and state courts in the United States,<ref name="raymond" /> though it constitutes a small percentage of all plea bargains in the US.<ref name="fisher">{{cite book | last =Fisher | first =George | title =Plea Bargaining's Triumph: A History of Plea Bargaining in America | publisher =[[Stanford University Press]] | year =2003 | page =[https://archive.org/details/pleabar_fis_2003_00_4508/page/319 319] | isbn =0-8047-5135-8 | url =https://archive.org/details/pleabar_fis_2003_00_4508/page/319 }}</ref> This form of plea is not allowed in courts of the [[United States military]].<ref name="davidson" /><ref name="walburn">{{cite journal | last =Walburn | first =Steve E. | title =Should the Military Adopt an ''Alford''-Type Guilty Plea? | journal =The Air Force Law Review | volume =44 | pages =119–169 | publisher =[[Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Air Force|Judge Advocate General School, United States Air Force]] | year =1998 }}</ref> In 2000, the [[United States Department of Justice]] noted: "In an Alford plea the defendant agrees to plead guilty because he or she realizes that there is little chance to win acquittal because of the strong evidence of guilt. About 17% of State inmates and 5% of Federal inmates submitted either an Alford plea or a no contest plea, regardless of the type of attorney. This difference reflects the relative readiness of State courts, compared to Federal courts, to accept an alternative plea."<ref>{{cite news | first=Caroline Wolf | last=Harlow | title=Defense Counsel in Criminal Cases | date=November 2000 | publisher=[[United States Department of Justice]] | url =http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ascii/dccc.txt | work =NCJ 179023 | access-date = 2009-12-03 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080716091432/http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ascii/dccc.txt |archive-date = 2008-07-16}}</ref>

In the 1995 case ''State of Idaho v. Howry'' before the [[Idaho Court of Appeals]], the Court commented on the impact of the Alford guilty plea on later sentencing.<ref name="cooper" /> The Court ruled: "Although an Alford plea allows a defendant to plead guilty amid assertions of innocence, it does not require a court to accept those assertions. The sentencing court may, of necessity, consider a broad range of information, including the evidence of the crime, the defendant's criminal history and the demeanor of the defendant, including the presence or absence of remorse."<ref name="cooper">{{Cite web|last=Cooper |first=Bob |title=Coles Enters Guilty Pleas on Two Felony Charges |work=Office of Attorney General Lawrence Wasden |publisher=[[Idaho|State of Idaho]] |date=November 3, 2003 |url=http://www2.state.id.us/ag/newsrel/2003/nr_nov032003b.htm |access-date=2009-11-30 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091001060416/http://www2.state.id.us/ag/newsrel/2003/nr_nov032003b.htm |archive-date=October 1, 2009 }}</ref> In the 1999 [[South Carolina Supreme Court]] case ''State v. Gaines'', that court held that Alford guilty pleas would be considered valid even in the absence of a specific on-the-record ruling that the pleas were voluntary, provided that the sentencing judge acted appropriately in accordance with the rules for acceptance of a plea made voluntarily by the defendant.<ref name="nichols">{{cite journal | last1 =Nichols | first1 =John S. | first2 =Robert L. |last2=Felix |first3=F. Patrick |last3=Hubbard |first4=Herbert A. |last4=Johnson |first5=William S. |last5=McAninch |first6=Eldon D. |last6=Wedlock | title =Department: What's New? | journal =South Carolina Lawyer | volume =11 | page =48 | publisher =[[South Carolina Bar]] | date =September–October 1999 }}</ref> The Court held that a ruling that the plea was entered into voluntarily is implied by the act of sentencing.<ref name="nichols" />

{{Quote box
| width = 25em
| salign = right
| quote = Alford plea (''see North Carolina v. Alford'', 400 U.S. 25, 91 S.Ct. 160 (1970)) (when a defendant maintains his or her innocence with respect to the charge to which he or she offers to plead guilty)
| source = [[United States Department of Justice]]<ref name="doj" />
}}
In a 2006 case before the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit]], ''Ballard v. Burton'', Judge [[Carl E. Stewart]] writing for the court held that an Alford guilty plea is a "variation of an ordinary guilty plea".<ref name="bustos">{{cite journal | last =Bustos | first =Fernando | title =Fifth Circuit Survey: June 2005 – May 2006: Survey Article: Civil Rights | journal = Texas Tech Law Review | volume =39 | page =719 | publisher =[[Texas Tech University School of Law]] | date =Spring 2007 }}</ref> In October 2008, the United States Department of Justice defined an Alford plea as follows: "the defendant maintains his or her innocence with respect to the charge to which he or she offers to plead guilty".<ref name="doj">{{cite news | last=United States Department of Justice | author-link=United States Department of Justice | title=9-16.015 Approval Required for Consent to Alford Plea | date=October 2008 | publisher=www.justice.gov | url =https://www.justice.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/title9/16mcrm.htm#9-16.015 | work =Pleas – Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11 | access-date = 2009-12-03 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20091102233218/http://www.justice.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/title9/16mcrm.htm| archive-date= 2 November 2009 | url-status= live}}</ref>

In March 2009, the [[Minnesota House of Representatives]] characterized the Alford plea as "a form of a guilty plea in which the defendant asserts innocence but acknowledges on the record that the prosecutor could present enough evidence to prove guilt."<ref>{{cite news | last=Minnesota House of Representatives | author-link=Minnesota House of Representatives | title= Permanent disqualification | date=March 27, 2009 | publisher=[[Minnesota]] | url =http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/bs/86/hf1750.html | work =Bill Summary: House Research Department | access-date = 2009-12-03 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20091204055107/http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/bs/86/hf1750.html| archive-date= 4 December 2009 | url-status= live}}</ref> The Minnesota Judicial Branch similarly states: "Alford Plea: A plea of guilty that may be accepted by a court even where the defendant does not admit guilt. In an Alford plea, defendant has to admit that he has reviewed the state's evidence, a reasonable jury could find him guilty, and he wants to take advantage of a plea offer that has been made. Court has discretion as to whether to accept this type of plea."<ref>{{cite news|last=Minnesota Judicial Branch |title=Alford Plea |publisher=[[Minnesota]] |url=http://mncourts.gov/district/5/?page=490 |work=Glossary of Legal Terms |access-date=2009-12-03 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528004330/http://www.mncourts.gov/district/5/?page=490 |archive-date=2010-05-28 }}</ref>

The [[U.S. Attorneys' Manual]] states that in the federal system, Alford pleas "should be avoided except in the most unusual circumstances, even if no plea agreement is involved and the plea would cover all pending charges." [[U.S. Attorney]]s are required to obtain the approval of an [[United States Assistant Attorney General|Assistant Attorney General]] with supervisory responsibility over the subject matter before accepting such a plea.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/title9/27mcrm.htm#9-27.440|title=9-27.440 Plea Agreements When Defendant Denies Guilt|date=February 20, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/title9/16mcrm.htm#9-16.015|title=9-16.015 Approval Required for Consent to Alford Plea|date=February 20, 2015}}</ref>

=== Use in post-conviction proceedings ===
The Alford plea has received public attention for its use in resolving high-profile post-conviction proceedings for individuals who claim they were [[Miscarriage of justice|wrongfully convicted]] for crimes they did not commit.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Grey |first=Orrin |date=2022-08-31 |title=The Alford Plea's Most Famous Cases—and What the Plea Really Means |url=https://the-line-up.com/famous-alford-plea-cases |access-date=2023-03-31 |website=The Lineup |language=en}}</ref> In 2011, the [[West Memphis Three]]—three men who had been convicted as teenagers of the 1993 murders of three children and sentenced to life in prison or, for one defendant, the death penalty—entered Alford pleas decades following their initial convictions.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Robertson |first=Campbell |date=2011-08-19 |title=Deal Frees 'West Memphis Three' in Arkansas |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/20/us/20arkansas.html |access-date=2023-03-31 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> New evidence had come to light that might exonerate them, so the [[Arkansas Supreme Court]] ordered an evidentiary hearing to consider whether a new trial would be required.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Liu |first=Lloyd |date=October 2020 |title=On Further Review: On the Challenges of the Alford Plea |url=https://bracewell.com/sites/default/files/news-files/On%20the%20Challenges%20of%20the%20Alford%20Plea.pdf |website=Washington Lawyer |access-date=March 31, 2023 |archive-date=May 18, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230518124705/https://bracewell.com/sites/default/files/news-files/On%20the%20Challenges%20of%20the%20Alford%20Plea.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> Instead of holding the hearing, the defendants and state prosecutors agreed that the court would vacate the prior convictions to permit the defendants to enter Alford pleas, be re-sentenced to "[[time served]]," and obtain immediate release from prison.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> As part of the plea deal, the men agreed not to sue the state seeking civil damages for their convictions and imprisonment.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

Similarly, novelist [[Michael Peterson trial|Michael Peterson]], who had been convicted in 2003 of murdering his wife, entered an Alford plea in 2017 to resolve the case against him. Peterson's case had been the subject of the 2004 documentary series ''[[The Staircase (French miniseries)|The Staircase]]'' and other media scrutiny, and Peterson continued to challenge his conviction based on alleged law enforcement misconduct and judicial errors. He was eventually granted a new trial, but then agreed to enter an Alford plea to the lesser offense of [[voluntary manslaughter]] instead. The judge then imposed a sentence that, after being reduced to account for time already served, resulted in Peterson serving no additional time in prison.<ref name=":0" /> A 2022 scripted drama miniseries, also called [[The Staircase (American miniseries)|''The Staircase'']], portrayed the events of the case, including the legal battle and Alford plea.<ref name=":0" />

== Commentary ==
In his book ''American Criminal Justice'' (1972), Jonathan D. Casper comments: "The ''Alford'' decision recognizes the plea-bargaining system, acknowledging that a man may maintain his innocence but still plead guilty in order to minimize his potential loss."<ref name="jackson">{{cite book | last =Jackson | first =Bruce | title =Law and Disorder | publisher =[[University of Illinois]] Press | year =1984 | pages =[https://archive.org/details/lawdisordercrimi0000jack/page/119 119–120] | isbn =0-252-01012-4 | url =https://archive.org/details/lawdisordercrimi0000jack/page/119 }}</ref> Casper comments on the impact of the Supreme Court's decision to require evidence of guilt in such a plea: "By requiring that there be some evidence of guilt in such a situation, the decision attempts to protect the 'really' innocent from the temptations to which plea-bargaining and defense attorneys may subject them."<ref name="jackson" />

[[U.S. Air Force]] attorney Steven E. Walburn argues in a 1998 article in ''The Air Force Law Review'' that this form of guilty plea should be adopted for usage by the United States military.<ref name="walburn" /> "In fairness to an accused, if, after consultation with his defense counsel, he knowingly and intelligently determines that his best interest is served by an Alford-type guilty plea, he should be free to choose this path. The system should not force him to [[lie under oath]], nor to go to trial with no promise of the ultimate outcome concerning guilt or punishment. We must trust the accused to make such an important decision for himself. The military provides an accused facing [[court-martial]] with a qualified defense attorney. Together, they are in the best position to properly weigh what the impact his decision, and the resulting conviction, will have upon himself and his family."<ref name="walburn" /> He emphasizes that when allowing these pleas, "trial counsel should establish as strong a factual basis as possible", in order to minimize the possible negative outcomes to "the public's perception of the administration of justice within the military".<ref name="walburn" />

{{Quote box
| width = 25em
| align = right
| salign = right
| quote = These procedures may be constitutional and efficient, but they undermine key values served by admissions of guilt in open court.
| author = [[Stephanos Bibas]]
| source = ''[[Cornell Law Review]]''<ref name="bibas" />
}}

[[Stephanos Bibas]] writes in a 2003 analysis for ''[[Cornell Law Review]]'' that Judge [[Frank H. Easterbrook]] and a majority of scholars "praise these pleas as efficient, constitutional means of resolving cases".<ref name="bibas" /> Bibas notes that prominent plea bargain critic [[Albert Alschuler]] supports the use of this form of plea: "He views them as a lesser evil, a way to empower defendants within a flawed system. As long as we have plea bargaining, he maintains, innocent defendants should be free to use these pleas to enter advantageous plea bargains without lying. And guilty defendants who are in denial should be empowered to use these pleas instead of being forced to stand trial."<ref name="bibas" /> Bibas instead asserts that this form of plea is "unwise and should be abolished":<ref name="bibas" /> "These procedures may be constitutional and efficient, but they undermine key values served by admissions of guilt in open court. They undermine the procedural values of accuracy and public confidence in accuracy and fairness, by convicting innocent defendants and creating the perception that innocent defendants are being pressured into pleading guilty. More basically, they allow guilty defendants to avoid accepting responsibility for their wrongs."<ref name="bibas" />

Legal scholar Jim Drennan, an expert on the court system at the Institute of Government at the [[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill]], told the ''[[Winston-Salem Journal]]'' in a 2007 interview that the ability to use this form of guilty plea as an option in courts had a far-reaching effect throughout the United States: "We have lots of laws, but human interaction creates unique circumstances and the law has to adapt."<ref name="barksdale" /> He added that the Supreme Court "had to make a decision about what to do. One of the things the court has to do is figure out how to answer new questions, and that is what happened in this case."<ref name="barksdale">{{cite news | last =Barksdale | first =Titan | title =(Not) Guilty – Lawyer in case that led to Alford plea says he worried about later questions | work =[[Winston-Salem Journal]] | page =B1 | date =28 March 2007 | url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-30144461_ITM | access-date = 2013-07-31}}</ref>

Common criticisms of Alford pleas include harm to victims who are denied justice, harm to society from lack of respect for the criminal justice system, the incentive for coercion, violating the right against self-incrimination, hindering rehabilitation by avoiding treatment, and the arbitrary nature in which they are utilized, allowing a person to say one thing when they mean another.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Conklin|first=Michael|date=2020|title=The Alford Plea Turns Fifty: Why It Deserves Another Fifty Years|url=https://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=3607635|language=en|journal=54 Creighton L. Rev. 1|ssrn=3607635}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|United States|Law}}
{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Alternative pleading]]
* [[Deferred adjudication]]
* [[Insanity defense]]
* [[List of people who entered an Alford plea]]
* [[List of U.S. states by Alford plea usage]]
* ''[[Malum in se]]''
* ''[[Malum prohibitum]]''
* ''[[Nolo contendere]]''
* [[Peremptory plea]]
* [[Michael Peterson trial|Michael Peterson]]
* [[West Memphis Three]]
{{Div col end}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite journal | last = McConville | first = Mike | year = 1998 | title = Plea Bargainings: Ethics and Politics | journal = Journal of Law and Society | volume = 25 | issue = 4 | pages = 562–587 | doi = 10.1111/1467-6478.00103 | s2cid = 146427753 }}
* {{cite journal | last = Shipley | first = Curtis J. | year = 1987 | title = The ''Alford'' Plea: A Necessary But Unpredictable Tool for the Criminal Defendant | journal = Iowa Law Review | volume = 72 | pages = 1063 | issn = 0021-0552 }}
* {{cite journal | last = Ward | first = Bryan H. | year = 2003 | title = A Plea Best Not Taken: Why Criminal Defendants Should Avoid the ''Alford'' Plea | journal = Missouri Law Review | volume = 68 | pages = 913 | issn = 0026-6604 }}

== External links ==
{{Wikisource|North Carolina v. Alford}}
{{Wiktionary|Alford plea}}
* [http://www.jud.ct.gov/legalterms.htm Alford Doctrine] – [[Connecticut|State of Connecticut]], Judicial Branch
* [https://www.justice.gov/usao/eousa/foia_reading_room/usam/title9/16mcrm.htm USAM 9-16.000 Pleas—Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 11], [[United States Department of Justice]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091204084501/http://www.mcacp.org/issue39.htm Issue: Effect of Alford Plea of Guilty], ''Issues In NY Criminal Law'', Volume 4, Issue 11.
* [http://forms.justia.com/north-carolina/statewide/criminal/transcript-of-plea-20854.html Transcript Of Plea Form], [[North Carolina]], with question about term
;Court cases
* [http://supreme.justia.com/us/400/25/case.html ''North Carolina v. Alford''], [[Supreme Court of the United States]]
* [http://www.altlaw.org/v1/cases/142191 ''US v. Szucko'']{{Dead link|date=September 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, Definition of term by [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit]]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20091126184107/http://library.law.emory.edu/1circuit/june2000/98-2178.01a.html ''US v. Bierd''], Definition of term by [[United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit]]

{{Alford plea}}
{{Criminal procedure (investigation)}}

[[Category:Alford plea| ]]
[[Category:Pleas]]