In the legal world, a plea of “not guilty” is an explicit defense of oneself against the charges laid against them. When a person pleads not guilty, they are contesting that the facts presented by the prosecution cannot be sufficiently proven, or that they do not constitute a criminal offense.
In a criminal trial, if the jury unanimously decides that the evidence presented by the prosecution cannot prove the defendant’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, then they must declare the defendant ‘not guilty’. But just because the jury finds a person not guilty, it does not mean that the person did not commit the crime. The fact-finding process of a criminal trial is strictly determining the degree of guilt or innocence found from the evidence presented.
In modern society, an accused person is considered ‘not guilty’ until their guilt is proven in a criminal trial. This is the presumption of innocence, and is a fundamental right protected by the law in democratic societies. This is a cornerstone of justice, and it requires prosecutors to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused person committed the crime.
In the United States specifically, a person is protected from double jeopardy, meaning they cannot be tried twice for the same or similar offense after being declared not guilty. And if a person is found not guilty and then later new evidence of their guilt emerges, they still cannot be tried again, as there must be a consensus of the jurors in order for guilt to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
The Key Takeaway
The outcome of a criminal trial depends on the strength of the evidence presented. When the evidence presented can’t prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused committed the offense, the defendant should be declared not guilty and allowed to go free.