KENTUCKY (WKYT) - This week has highlighted several cases where defendants took guilty pleas while maintaining their innocence.

For today’s Good Question, Lucy asks: How did the Alford Plea start?

The Alford Plea is named after Henry Alford, who was charged with first-degree murder in 1963. Witnesses testified that he said he was going to kill a man, left his house with a gun, and then said he had killed the man when he returned home.

Even with that evidence, Alford maintained his innocence. There was no actual witness to the crime itself.

The Strategic Decision

His attorney told him he would probably lose if they went to trial. Alford eventually agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder but still said he was innocent. He told the court he was pleading guilty only to avoid the d

See Full Page