available 24/7 Free Consultation
Posted on February 24, 2026 in DUI
In Arizona, if you are charged with a criminal offense like driving under the influence (DUI) and do not plead guilty, you have one of two options: plead not guilty or plead no contest.
Guilty and not guilty pleas are easy to understand, but a no contest plea is more complicated. In this blog post, we consider the details of entering a no contest plea to an Arizona DUI charge.
If you are facing a DUI in Arizona, an experienced DUI attorney like one at Rosenstein Law Group can help you understand whether to consider a no contest plea. Call us at (480) 248-7666 or use our contact form to schedule a free consultation with an attorney.
A no contest plea is an alternative to pleading guilty. This kind of plea usually comes into consideration when the state has substantial evidence against you that could prove your guilt. Pleading no contest effectively states that you are not challenging the DUI allegations or evidence against you, but you are also not admitting your guilt.
After you submit a no contest plea, a judge will review the prosecution’s evidence and will most likely find you guilty. You will receive a DUI conviction and be sentenced accordingly.
While it may sound like a guilty plea, and often has the same legal effect, a no contest plea can have some advantages for you in limited circumstances. For example, if you are being sued in a civil court case based on the same facts as the DUI charge, a no contest plea cannot be used as a guilty plea in the civil case.
Otherwise, usually what leads to a no contest plea is a situation in which you cannot clearly recall important facts because of intoxication or the passage of time.
Pleading guilty to a DUI charge means you are admitting that you committed the crime and are accepting the penalties without attempting to prove your innocence. Pleading guilty takes away your right to fight the evidence in court. In some cases, a guilty plea can have a silver lining, including its use in a plea bargain under which the prosecution agrees to a lesser charge than it would have pursued against you otherwise.
Generally, it is best not to plead guilty during your arraignment hearing or plea hearing. Pleading guilty early forfeits your right to fight the charges.
The penalties for a DUI conviction in Arizona can be severe. Thus, it is better to plead not guilty at the outset and give yourself time to hire a DUI defense lawyer and develop a strategy before your next hearing. Your criminal defense lawyer can always submit a request for a different plea and negotiate a plea deal later—any time before the jury verdict—if need be.
Both a guilty plea and a no contest plea will lead to a DUI conviction. If you want to fight a DUI charge, you must submit a plea of not guilty instead. This means you are taking the stance that you did not commit the crime in question and plan to contest the charges at a DUI trial.
At this point, if you have not already, you should hire a DUI defense lawyer to help you create a strong defense for your hearing.
It can be hard to know if you have a chance of beating a DUI charge by going to trial.
An experienced DUI defense lawyer can carefully review the facts of your case and the evidence the state is intending on using against you to let you know how strong it is and if there are defense options available for you to fight the DUI. Your attorney can also represent you during a DUI trial to maximize your chance of a positive jury verdict.
In a free initial consultation, a DUI lawyer from Rosenstein Law Group can go over all of the possible consequences of each type of plea. Your attorney can help you decide which plea to enter according to the circumstances of your case, based on your criminal record, the evidence the prosecution has against you, your drug or alcohol test results, and other factors.
If you are seeking premium legal defense, call us at (480) 248-7666 or use our contact form to request a free consultation and case evaluation.