People v. Serrano

The principal question presented is whether a judgment of conviction, entered upon a plea of guilty to a particular crime, may .stand where the record discloses that, before accepting the plea, the court elicited information from the defendant which cast doubt upon his guilt of the crime to which he pleaded.

The defendant, accused of shooting and killing one Gilberto Bonilla, was indicted for the crime of murder in the first degree and, upon his arraignment and in the presence of counsel, entered a plea of not guilty. Subsequently, after the selection of a jury and the opening statement by the…