Conviction

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For other senses of this word, see Conviction (disambiguation).
"Convicted" redirects here. For other uses, see Convicted (disambiguation).

Criminal procedure

Criminal trials and convictions

Rights of the accused

 Fair trial
 Pre-trial
 Speedy trial
 Jury trial
 Counsel
 Presumption of innocence
 Exclusionary rule1
 Self-incrimination
 Double jeopardy2

Verdict

 Conviction
 Acquittal
 Not proven3
 Directed verdict

Sentencing

 Mandatory
 Suspended
 Custodial
 Periodic
 Discharge
 Guidelines
  Totality5, 6
 Dangerous offender4, 5
 Capital punishment
 Execution warrant

 Cruel and unusual punishment

 Imprisonment
 Life imprisonment
 Indefinite imprisonment

Post-sentencing

 Parole
 Probation
 Tariff 6
 Life licence6
 Miscarriage of justice
 Exoneration
 Pardon
 Sex offender registration
 Sexually violent predator legislation1

Related areas of law

 Criminal defenses
 Criminal law
 Evidence
 Civil procedure

Portals

 Law
 Criminal justice

 1
US courts

 2
Not in English/Welsh courts

 3
Scottish courts

 4
English/Welsh courts

 5
Canadian courts

 6
UK courts
  v
 t
 e

In law, a conviction is the verdict that usually results when a court of law finds a defendant guilty of
a crime.[1] The opposite of a conviction is an acquittal (that is, "not guilty"). In Scotland and in
the Netherlands, there can also be a verdict of "not proven", which counts as an acquittal. There are
also cases in which the court orders that a defendant not be convicted, despite being found guilty; in
England, Wales, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand the mechanism for this is a discharge.
For a host of reasons, the criminal justice system is not perfect: sometimes guilty defendants are
acquitted, while innocent people are convicted. Appeal mechanisms and post conviction relief
procedures may mitigate the effects of a conviction to some extent. An error which results in the
conviction of an innocent person is known as a miscarriage of justice.
After a defendant is convicted, the court determines the appropriate sentence as a punishment.
Furthermore, the conviction may lead to results beyond the terms of the sentence itself. Such
ramifications are known as the collateral consequences of criminal charges.
A minor conviction is a warning conviction, and it does not affect the defendant but does serve as
a warning.[citation needed]
A history of convictions are called antecedents, known colloquially as "previous" in the United
Kingdom, and "priors" in the United States and Australia. The history of convictions also shows that
a minor law conviction can be prosecuted as any individual's punishment.

See also[edit]
 Directed verdict