The decision whether (and when) to plead guilty is often a difficult, complex question faced by defendants and their counsel. Particularly in multi-defendant cases, an early guilty plea can reap huge benefits relative to the plea deal available to co-defendants left behind. On the other hand, the choice to plead early, particularly when coupled with a cooperation agreement, becomes a difficult one to swallow where co-defendants subsequently proceed to trial and are acquitted. What may have been a fair and prudent deal when it was evaluated at the beginning of a case may look very different with the benefit of hindsight. In this context (as in most contexts), courts almost never permit defendants to withdraw guilty pleas.

In March 2012, however, Judge Richard Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed all charges at the government’s request against three defendants who had previously pleaded guilty in a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) case, which has been commonly referred to as the “SHOT Show” case (named after the annual Las Vegas-based shooting, hunting, and law enforcement trade show where many of the defendants were arrested after an extensive “sting” operation). By taking a closer look at this recent case, this column provides a brief review of the applicable legal standards, examines the limited types of circumstances where courts will revisit guilty pleas, and, based on interviews with the attorneys for the “SHOT Show” defendants whose guilty pleas were vacated, provides insight into circumstances that can lead to post-plea dismissal.

Withdrawal and Dismissal

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