Nolo Contendere Plea

With a nolo contendere plea, the defendant is not requested by the court to apologize, or allocute, for his or her actions. This is something that may be requested in other cases in exchange for a reduced sentence. For instance, if a victim is injured due to a defendant’s behavior, typically a formal apology is made by the defendant to the victim and his or her family. In a no contest plea, this is not required as it would essentially be an admission of guilt.

It is unlikely that the court will allow you to enter a nolo contendere plea while at the same time firmly asserting your innocence. This type of plea is known as an Alford plea, based on a 1963 murder case in North Carolina. The defendant pled guilty to second-degree murder to avoid the death penalty, but still vocalized his innocence. Neither the nolo contendere plea nor the Alford plea could later be used in a civil action as evidence against the defendant.

Restrictions on pleading no contest vary between states, and in some jurisdictions it is prohibited. Learn about implied consent,

States/Abbreviations
AK	Alaska	LA	Louisiana	OH	Ohio
AL	Alabama	MA	Massachusetts	OK	Oklahoma
AR	Arkansas	MD	Maryland	OR	Oregon
AZ	Arizona	ME	Maine	PA	Pennsylvania
CA	California	MI	Michigan	RI	Rhode Island
CO	Colorado	MN	Minnesota	SC	South Carolina
CT	Connecticut	MO	Missouri	SD	South Dakota
DE	Delaware	MS	Mississippi	TN	Tennessee
FL	Florida	MT	Montana	TX	Texas
GA	Georgia	NC	North Carolina	UT	Utah
HI	Hawaii	ND	North Dakota	VT	Vermont
IA	Iowa	NE	Nebraska	VA	Virginia
ID	Idaho	NH	New Hampshire	WA	Washington State
IL	Illinois	NJ	New Jersey	WI	Wisconsin
IN	Indiana	NM	New Mexico	WV	West Virginia
KS	Kansas	NV	Nevada	WY	Wyoming
KY	Kentucky	NY	New York	DC	Washington DC