Legal Topics > Criminal Law >

Nolo's Plain-English Law Dictionary

Need Professional Help? Talk to a Lawyer
Enter Your Zip Code to Connect with a Lawyer Serving Your Area

Not Guilty: A plea entered by a defendant in a criminal case. Often erroneously confused with a claim of innocence, technically a plea of not guilty simply compels the prosecution to prove every element of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt. When the jury (or a judge sitting without a jury) acquits a defendant after trial, they return a verdict of "not guilty," which indicates their conclusion that the prosecution did not meet its burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. (See also: reasonable doubt)

Need Legal Help?
Get Informed	Check out our thousands of free articles on everyday legal topics--they're accurate, up to date, and written in plain English.
Do It Yourself	With Nolo's easy-to-use books, legal forms, online services, and software, you can handle many routine legal tasks yourself.
Talk to a Lawyer	Just enter your zip code to connect with a lawyer serving your area.

More Information

Get Informed