Practice Areas

Withdrawing Guilty Pleas

After an individual is convicted of a crime by entering a plea of “guilty” or “no-contest”, they many want to “take back” or “withdraw” their plea. In order to do this, an individual must file a “motion to withdraw plea.” The individual petitions the Court to allow them to take back their guilty or non-contest plea and restart their case by entering a “not guilty” plea to the same charges.

A judge may deny a motion to withdraw a plea unless the individual shows “good cause”
why they should not be stuck with the plea they entered. For example, the individual’s
prior attorney did not properly represent them in a significant way, or they were not properly advised about all of the significant consequences of entering a plea of guilty or no contest, such as immigration consequences, that they were pleading to a “strike” offense or how long they were ordered to stay in jail or prison.

The legal team at the Law Offices of Schwartz & Weinrieb has extensive expertise in
handling motions to withdraw pleas. Most importantly, our attorneys will analyze your
case and give you their absolute honest opinion about whether filing a motion to withdraw
plea is a good or bad choice. If filing a motion to withdraw plea is a sensible option,
we will handle the process from start to finish. If we believe filing a motion to
withdraw plea will not help your case, we will let you know. In some cases, withdrawing
a plea could actually hurt a person and likely result in a greater punishment. In those cases a motion should not be filed.

If you or a loved one is considering withdrawing a “guilty” or “no-contest plea to a
criminal charge, contact a criminal defense attorney from Schwartz & Weinrieb today at
(818) 888-2711.