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Inlaw, aconviction is the determination by acourt of law that adefendant isguilty of acrime.[1] A conviction may follow a guiltyplea that is accepted by the court, ajury trial in which averdict of guilty is delivered, or atrial by judge in which the defendant is found guilty.
The opposite of a conviction is anacquittal (that is, "not guilty"). InScotland, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which is considered an acquittal. Sometimes, despite a defendant being found guilty, the court may order that the defendant not be convicted. This is known as adischarge and is used in countries including England, Wales, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
In anycriminal justice system, innocent people are sometimes convicted.Appeal mechanisms andpost conviction relief procedures may help to address this issue to some extent. An error leading to the conviction of an innocent person is known as amiscarriage of justice. In some judicial systems, the prosecution may appeal acquittals; while in others, this is prohibited underdouble jeopardy protections.
After a defendant is convicted, the court determines the appropriatesentence as apunishment. In addition to the sentence, a conviction can also have other consequences, known ascollateral consequences of criminal charges. These can include impacts on employment, housing, the right to travel to other countries, and other areas of an individual's life.
A person's history of convictions is known as theirantecedents or "previous" in the United Kingdom and "priors" in the United States and Australia.
