Election and Plea

You can plead either guilty or not guilty to an offence. Pleading guilty means you are admitting you committed the offence you are charged with. Pleading not guilty means you are not admitting you committed the offence. If you plead guilty, you will be sentenced and receive a punishment. If you plead not guilty, you will have a trial where the Prosecutor will try to prove "beyond a reasonable doubt" that you committed the offence.

When you are first asked if you are ready to enter a plea, it is usually a good idea to ask for some additional time to consider your options. Even if the judge does not suggest this or ask you about it, you can ask for more time. Unless your case has already been adjourned several times, the judge will normally allow this. It is very important to understand the charges and the case against you before you decide to enter a plea.

There are a few things to do or think about before entering your plea, ideally with the help of your lawyer...

• Ask the Prosecutor or police for the disclosure package if they have not already given it to you. If you are self-represented, the judge may also ask the Prosecutor about this.
• Review the disclosure to see what the Prosecutor or police are saying and whether they have evidence to support their case against you.
• If you must enter a plea before you've had a chance to see and review the disclosure, it is a good idea to plead "not guilty". You can change your plea later if you want to after reviewing the disclosure.
• Talk to a lawyer or a court worker about your charges.
• Talk to the Prosecutor or police about other ways to resolve your case if you are going to plead guilty. This could mean:
  • sending the charge through alternative measures
  • entering into some type of plea agreement with the Prosecutor or police (see What is a Plea Bargain below)
  • having your matter referred to a therapeutic court like domestic violence or drug treatment court
• Get an idea of what type of sentence the Prosecutor or police are asking for if you plead guilty or are found guilty after a trial.

If you plead guilty, the judge must be satisfied that you know and understand what you are pleading guilty to, that you admit the elements of the offence, that your plea is voluntary and that the facts alleged support the charge. If the judge accepts the guilty plea, the judge will give you a sentence. See Sentencing.

If you plead not guilty, your case will be scheduled for either a preliminary hearing or a trial.

If you are charged with an indictable offence or a hybrid offence that is being treated as indictable and if you plead not guilty, the judge will ask you if you are ready to make your election - to decide whether you want your case heard in Provincial Court or at the Court of King's Bench. You may not be ready to decide yet and you can ask for some more time to decide if you need it. If you are ready and if you choose the Court of King's Bench, the judge will also ask if you want to have a trial where a judge decides the outcome or where a jury decides.

If you choose the Court of King's Bench for your trial, you may also choose to first have a preliminary hearing at Provincial Court. At that hearing, the Prosecutor calls witnesses and you or your lawyer can cross-examine those witnesses. You do not call any witnesses at a preliminary hearing. At the end of the hearing, the judge decides whether there is enough evidence to go to a full trial at the Court of King's Bench. If they do not think there is enough, you are discharged and the entire case ends. If there is enough evidence, the case is scheduled for a trial.