Nolo Contendere
By Tonya Richardson
The Atlanta Citizen Review Board (ACRB) receives several complaints from citizens alleging they were falsely arrested. The citizen files a formal complaint alleging the wrongdoing of an Atlanta Police Department (APD) Officer for effectuating an arrest. The ACRB opens an investigation and the investigator discovers the citizen has plead “Nolo Contendere” to the charges for which they were arrested. The investigator then must notify the citizen the ACRB cannot investigate their false arrest allegation because of their plea.
In this post I will take the time to explain why the ACRB has no authority to investigate a false arrest allegation when the citizen has entered a nolo contendere plea.
Let us begin with the definition of nolo contendere so everyone understands what the term means in a court of law.
NOLO CONTENDERE [1]
no·lo con·ten·de·re
/ˌnōlō kənˈtendərē/
noun
US LAW
- a plea by which a defendant in a criminal prosecution accepts conviction as though a guilty plea had been entered but does not admit guilt.
Although generally referred to as a plea of No Contest, the official term that a defendant must plea is Nolo Contendere, a Latin phrase that means no contest or I do not wish to contend.
Now I will explain the difference between a guilty plea and a nolo contendere or no contest plea.
Pleading guilty means, you admit to the charges, you have no defense for your actions, and the court can go ahead and decide on a punishment against you. In a general scenario, the defendant gives up the right to go to trial in exchange for the prosecution’s agreeing to accept a conviction for a lesser offense or for a lesser punishment, or both. A guilty plea can be used against you in future court proceedings, while a no contest plea cannot.
In many jurisdictions, when you are charged with a crime, you have the option of pleading guilty, not guilty, or no contest. The no contest plea has the same consequences as guilty pleas, with the defendant receiving a conviction and accepting some form of punishment, but the defendant does not actually admit guilt. A nolo contendere plea is a lot like a guilty plea. The conviction still goes on your record in the same way it would if you had plead guilty or been convicted at trial. If a citizen did not go to trial, but entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, they cannot appeal the judgement against them.
Although a nolo contendere/no contest plea is not an admission of guilt, the individual has accepted some responsibility for the crime they were charged with.
If a citizen does believe they have been falsely arrested by an APD Officer, and they have not accepted a plea agreement, I encourage them to file a complaint with the ACRB.
[1] https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C1GCEU_enUS913US913&q=Dictionary&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAONQesSoyi3w8sc9YSmZSWtOXmMU4-LzL0jNc8lMLsnMz0ssqrRiUWJKzeNZxMqFEAMA7_QXqzcAAAA&zx=1600717340871#dobs=nolo%20contendere
Tonya Richardson is an ACRB Senior Investigator.