Practice question
Under the ordinary Rule 116 procedure, an accused initially pleaded not guilty. Before trial, he seeks an otherwise proper plea to a necessarily included lesser offense with the required consents. What must happen to the initial plea?
- It must remain unchanged while a contradictory guilty plea is added
- The court must dismiss the information first
- The not-guilty plea must be withdrawn before the allowed lesser-offense plea is entered
- Counsel alone may secretly change it
- The complainant must enter the accused's plea
Legal references
- https://lawphil.net/courts/rules/rc_110-127_crim.html — Rule 116 §§1–8 (arraignment, pleas, searching inquiry, counsel); Rule 115 §1.
- https://lawphil.net/judjuris/juri2025/feb2025/gr_263038_2025.html — Aguiling v. People, G.R. No. 263038, February 17, 2025, MAIN decision (plea bargaining in drug cases; judicial framework and objection based solely on inconsistent DOJ policy).
- https://lawphil.net/judjuris/juri2025/jan2025/gr_259094_2025.html — Aquino v. People, G.R. No. 259094, January 28, 2025, EN BANC MAIN decision (drug-case plea bargaining framework and objections).
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