Can I Withdraw My Guilty Plea?

by Professor Byron L. Warnken on January 30, 2014

My lawyer kept telling me that he was going to work out a good deal or me.  He worked out a deal with the prosecutor.  The Judge might have been involved in working out the the deal, but I am not sure.  We went to court.  I am not a lawyer.  It was all so confusing to me.  First, my lawyer told me that the prosecutor and the Judge agreed to probation.  Then, he told me that the prosecutor agreed to probation, but that the judge may or may not go along with probation.  At the hearing in court, the prosecutor said that he would argue for “guidelines,” which my lawyer says means a sentence from probation to two years.

The Judge said that he “accepted” my plea.  What does that mean?  The Judge said that I have ten days to file a Motion for a New Trial.  What does that mean?  I never even had a trial, so how do I get a new trial?  The Judge “ordered a PSI.”  What does that mean?  The Judge scheduled sentencing for two months later.  I m not happy with the plea.  Can I get rid of the plea and, if I do, what happens then?

These are good questions.  Many individuals who just entered a guilty plea in what seemed like a whirlwind have the same questions.  During your plea, the judge asked a lot of questions.  The purpose of those questions was two-fold.  First, the Judge had to determine whether your plea was voluntary and whether your plea was knowing and intelligent.  A voluntary plea means one that the Defendant entered of his own free will and the Defendant was not coerced or pressured into entering the plea.  A knowing and intelligent plea does not necessarily mean a plea that was a smart deal or a good deal.  It means a plea in which the Defendant was provided with sufficient information to understand essentially what he was giving up and what he was getting by pleading guilty.  Second, the Judge must listen to the State’s “proffer.”  This means the State’s “offer of proof” of what it could prove if the case went to trial.  If the Judge decides that (1) the plea is voluntary and knowing and intelligent, and (2) there are sufficient facts from which a reasonable jury could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, the Judge accepts the plea, schedules sentencing, and usually orders a pre-sentence investigation (PSI).

When the Judge accepted the plea, he entered a finding of guilt.  This is just like a finding of guilt in any court trial or any jury trial.  In any case, after a finding of guilt, the Defendant may file a Motion for New Trial within ten days after the verdict.  It is within the trial court’s discretion whether to grant or deny a Motion for New Trial.  More than 90% of cases end in a guilty plea.  In those cases, the Defendant may file a Motion to Withdraw Guilty Plea at any time prior to sentencing, which is usually about two months after the guilty plea.  It is within the trial court’s discretion whether to grant the Motion to Withdraw Guilty Plea.  If the guilty plea is withdrawn, the case is scheduled for trial.


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