Rule 17.1. The Defendant's Plea
Arizona Revised Statutes AnnotatedRules of Criminal ProcedureEffective: January 1, 2021
Effective: January 1, 2021
16A A.R.S. Rules Crim.Proc., Rule 17.1
Rule 17.1. The Defendant's Plea
(2) Personal Appearance. Except as provided in these rules, a court may accept a plea only if the defendant makes it personally in open court. If the defendant is a corporation, defense counsel or a corporate officer may enter a plea for the corporation. For purposes of this rule, a defendant who makes an appearance under Rule 1.5 is deemed to personally appear.
(e) Waiver of Appeal. A defendant who pleads guilty or no contest in a noncapital case waives the right to file a notice of appeal and to have an appellate court review the proceedings on a direct appeal under Rule 31. A defendant who pleads guilty or no contest may seek relief under Rule 33 by filing a Notice Requesting Post-Conviction Relief and a Petition for Post-Conviction Relief in the trial court.
(1) Telephonic Pleas. “Telephonic” includes voice only and audio-video communications between the court and the parties. This rule's provisions concerning telephonic pleas also apply to pleas submitted through an online dispute resolution (“ODR”) system approved by the Administrative Office of the Courts.
(B) Procedure. The defendant must submit the plea in writing to the court, and the writing must be substantially in the form set forth in Rule 41, Form 28. If the court authorizes it, the defendant may submit plea documents through an ODR system, and Form 28 may be used for that process. The documents the defendant submits for a telephonic plea must include the following:
(i) a statement by the defendant that the defendant has read and understands the information in the form, waives applicable constitutional rights for a plea, and enters a plea of guilty or no contest to each of the offense(s) in the complaint, or to the offense(s) described in a written plea agreement
(i) If the defendant is entering a plea to an offense described in A.R.S. § 13-607(A), Form 28 also must contain a signed certification from a law enforcement officer in the state in which the defendant resides that the defendant personally appeared before the officer and signed Form 28, and that the officer affixed the defendant's fingerprint to the form.
(ii) If the defendant is entering a plea to an offense described in A.R.S. § 13-607(A) and the defendant's plea form does not include the defendant's fingerprint and the law enforcement officer's certification as this rule requires, the court may defer the plea's acceptance until the defendant has submitted the required fingerprint and certification, or until the defendant appears in open court for sentencing and provides a fingerprint at that time.
(A) Eligibility. A limited jurisdiction court has discretion to accept by mail a written plea of guilty or no contest to a misdemeanor or petty offense if the court finds that a personal appearance by the defendant would constitute an undue hardship such as illness, physical incapacity, substantial travel distance, or incarceration. The presiding judge of each court must establish a policy for the State's participation in pleas submitted by mail.
Credits
Added Aug. 31, 2017, effective Jan. 1, 2018. Amended Aug. 29, 2019, effective Jan. 1, 2020; Aug. 27, 2020, effective Jan. 1, 2021.
16A A. R. S. Rules Crim. Proc., Rule 17.1, AZ ST RCRP Rule 17.1
State Court Rules are current with amendments received and effective through 7/1/22. The Code of Judicial Administration is current with amendments received through 7/1/22.
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