A defendant may plead guilty or not guilty. The plea must be entered verbally in open court by the defendant or his/her attorney. It shall be entered in the minutes of the court but failure to do so shall not affect its validity in the prosecution of the case.When the charges entail an offense in some degree of recidivism the defendant may, when entering his/her plea, or at any subsequent time provided it is before the charges are read to the jury, admit the prior conviction or convictions and in such a case the jury shall not be informed in any manner whatsoever of the existence of said conviction or convictions. History —Sept. 15, 2004, No. 317, § 8.
Puerto Rico Legal Code