Legal Question in Criminal Law in Missouri

Re: Entering a plea

I have practiced criminal defense law in Missouri for almost thirty years and I have never seen or heard of a criminal charge being dropped at the arraignment. When a defendant pleads "not guilty" the case is usually continued, and either the case is disposed of by way of a plea bargain or the case is set for trial. Missouri Courts do not recognize a plea of "no contest", although some Courts in some cases will accept an Alford plea in which the defendant does not admit doing the acts he is charged with doing but does admit that the state has enough evidence to convict the defendant if the case were tried. Pleading "guilty" admits the criminal act itself, and may be the basis for civil liability. In other words, the victim of the crime could sue the defendant in civil court for damages and use the guilty plea as proof that the defendant is liable to the victim for damages. This would not be true if the defendant was allowed to enter an Alford plea.