A "green sheet" or a defendant-capped plea

When a defendant pleads guilty or admits that there are sufficient facts that could determine their guilt, their lawyers will often conference with the prosecutor to come up with a sentence that all parties agree to. Sometimes there are differences between what the defense and the prosecution thinks is an appropriate sentence.

A defendant may then take forward their terms and the prosecution’s terms for the judge to consider and hear arguments on. The judge may then agree with the defendant, the prosecutor or he may “split the baby” and find somewhere in between. A defendant-capped plea means that the decision does not bind the defendant if the judge agrees with the prosecutor or if the judge’s terms are not agreeable. The terms are capped at what the defendant wants. If the defendant does not wish to continue with his plea, he or she can take it back and move toward a trial. Defense counsel should request that in the event of trial, a different judge hear the matter.

In Charbonneau v. Holyoke Div. of Dist. Court Dep’t, the SJC vacated a standing order that disallowed a defendant from tendering a defendant-capped plea on the day of trial. Under M.G.L. ch. 278 s. 19 and Mass. R. Crim. P. 12, a defendant has an absolute right to tender a plea up to and until trial.