If a defendant is willing to admit that he or she is guilty of a crime, it is almost always in his or her favor to do so. By admitting guilt, a defendant demonstrates contrition and saves all parties the time necessary for preparing and conducting a trial. In exchange for a guilty plea, prosecutors and judges are generally willing to offer a reduced sentence for a crime. (Judges are ultimately responsible for accepting guilty pleas and sentencing defendants; however, prosecutors determine the charge brought against a defendant and can recommend appropriate sentences to the judge).

For a judge to accept a guilty plea, U.S. Federal and State law requires that the judge is satisfied that:

• The defendant understands the crime of which he is accused, the maximum sentence which he may be given, and the rights to trial and appeal that he is surrendering in issuing a guilty plea; and that
• The defendant has full mental faculty and has confessed/pleaded guilty without coercion; and that
• Sufficient evidence exists, independent of the defendant’s confession, to prove his/her guilt.

To obtain this assurance, the judge will require the defendant to confess in open court to the originally charged (or lesser, agreed upon) crime and to explain in his or her own words the facts related to the crime in question. The judge will further require the prosecutor to assert that he or she has sufficient evidence to convict the defendant. If the judge is satisfied that all conditions have been met, then the judge will accept the plea of guilty and, usually, issue a more lenient sentence than would otherwise be issued.