In United States law,an Alford plea,also called a Kennedy plea in West Virginia,an Alford guilty plea,and the Alford doctrine,is a guilty plea in criminal court,whereby a defendant in a criminal case does not admit to the criminal act and asserts innocence,but accepts imposition of a sentence. This plea is allowed even if the evidence to be presented by the prosecution would be likely to persuade a judge or jury to find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. This can be caused by circumstantial evidence and testimony favoring the prosecution,and difficulty finding evidence and witnesses that would aid the defense.
The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one federal courthouse in each district,and many districts have more than one. District court decisions are appealed to the U.S. court of appeals for the circuit in which they reside,except for certain specialized cases that are appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit or directly to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Mary Murphy Schroeder is an American attorney and jurist serving as a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Kent Joseph Dawson is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada.
Thomas Michael Hardiman is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Nominated by President George W. Bush,he began active service on April 2,2007. He maintains chambers in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,and was previously a United States district judge.
Susan Bieke Neilson was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit,and before that,a state trial judge in Michigan.
Edward Earl Carnes is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
Helene N. White is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Previously,she was a judge on the Michigan Court of Appeals.
Stanley Marcus is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and a former United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Raymond Michael Kethledge is a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He was appointed by President George W. Bush in 2008. Kethledge appeared on Donald Trump's list of potential Supreme Court of the United States nominees in 2016,and was described by press reports as a finalist in President Trump's nomination to replace Anthony Kennedy on the court.
Lance Michael Africk is a senior United States district judge for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.
Marianne Olga Battani was an American jurist who served as United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
Denise Louise Cote is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Amul Roger Thapar is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He previously served as a U.S. district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky from 2008 to 2017 and as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky from 2006 to 2008. Thapar was President Donald Trump's first Court of Appeals appointment and Trump's second judicial appointment after Justice Neil Gorsuch. Thapar was discussed as a candidate for the Supreme Court of the United States.
Gershwin Allen Drain is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
James Wesley Hendrix is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas and former assistant United States attorney for the same district. He presides over the Northern District's Lubbock,Abilene,and San Angelo Divisions,which account for 47 of the Northern District's 100 counties,and span an area larger than Pennsylvania.
Lafler v. Cooper,566 U.S. 156 (2012),was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court clarified the Sixth Amendment standard for reversing convictions due to ineffective assistance of counsel during plea bargaining. The Court ruled that when a lawyer's ineffective assistance leads to the rejection of a plea agreement,a defendant is entitled to relief if the outcome of the plea process would have been different with competent advice. In such cases,the Court ruled that the Sixth Amendment requires the trial judge to exercise discretion to determine an appropriate remedy.
Stephanie Dawkins Davis is an American lawyer who is serving as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. She previously served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan and a former United States magistrate judge of the same court.
Frances Kay Behm is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
