Nev. Rev. Stat. » NRS: CHAPTER 174 - ARRAIGNMENT AND PREPARATION FOR TRIAL
Nevada Revised Statutes

Nev. Rev. Stat. § 174.065 (2026)

When plea may specify degree of crime or punishment

✓ current as of July 2026
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NRS 174.065  When plea may specify degree of crime or punishment.  Except as otherwise provided in NRS 174.061:

      1.  On a plea of guilty or guilty but mentally ill to an information or indictment accusing a defendant of a crime divided into degrees, when consented to by the prosecuting attorney in open court and approved by the court, the plea may specify the degree, and in such event the defendant shall not be punished for a higher degree than that specified in the plea.

      2.  On a plea of guilty or guilty but mentally ill to an indictment or information for murder of the first degree, when consented to by the prosecuting attorney in open court and approved by the court, the plea may specify a punishment less than death. The specified punishment, or any lesser punishment, may be imposed by a single judge.

      (Added to NRS by 1967, 1416; A 1973, 1801; 1977, 1543; 1991, 291, 651; 1993, 828; 1995, 2451; 2003, 1458; 2007, 1409)

PLEADINGS AND MOTIONS BEFORE TRIAL; DEFENSES AND OBJECTIONS

     

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 15 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1971–2024 · leading case: Stahl v. State, 851 P.2d 436 (Nev. 1993).
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Stahl v. State, 851 P.2d 436 (Nev. 1993). · cites it 8× “The court rejected the joint recommendation, and appellant moved to withdraw his plea pursuant to NRS 174.065(3). 1 The court denied the motion and imposed a sentence to be served consecutively to appellant’s other sentence.”
Lovie v. State, 835 P.2d 20 (Nev. 1992). · cites it 4× “The day after the sentencing hearing, appellant filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea pursuant to NRS 174.065(3). The district court denied the motion on the ground that the motion should have been made at the time of sentencing and was therefore untimely.”
Kuykendall v. State, 926 P.2d 781 (Nev. 1996). “Pursuant to former NRS 174.065(3), appellant was entitled to withdraw his plea if the district court sentenced appellant to more than the recommended maximum of ten years under the plea agreement.”
Goldstein v. Pavlikowski, 489 P.2d 1159 (Nev. 1971). · cites it 3× “065 3 ) compel an accused, who desires the avoidance of a trial by jury, to plead guilty; *514 and secondly, that compelling a trial by jury against his will unconstitutionally deprives him of a fair and impartial trial. Impartiality is deprived, he asserts, in that his case has…”
Lehmann v. Warden, Nevada State Prison, 480 P.2d 155 (Nev. 1971). “320, subsection 2, repealed 1967, and now NRS 174.065, subsection 1: “On a plea of guilty to an information or indictment accusing a defendant of a crime divided into degrees, when consented to by the district attorney in open court and approved by the court, the plea may…”
Conger v. Warden, Nevada State Prison, 510 P.2d 1359 (Nev. 1973). · cites it 2× “NRS 174.065(2) does, of course, encourage plea bargaining in those cases where the penalty may be death.”
Reeves v. State, 944 P.2d 795 (Nev. 1997). · cites it 11× “On a plea of guilty to an information or indictment accusing a defendant of a crime divided into degrees, when consented to by the prosecuting attorney in open court and approved by the court, the plea may specify the degree, and in such event the defendant shall not be punished…”
Fugate (Matthew) v. State (Nev. 2017). · cites it 2× “065(3), which "entitle[d] a defendant who has bargained for a particular punishment to receive that punishment at most, or to be given the opportunity to withdraw the plea.”
Santiago v. Johnson (D. Nev. 2024). · cites it 2× “10 Under the former Nev. Rev. Stat. § 174.065 (3), a defendant in Nevada had a statutory 11 right to withdraw a guilty plea when the court rejected a sentencing recommendation in a plea 12 agreement.”
Smith (Joshua) v. State (Nev. 2019). “Those cases relied on former NRS 174.065(3), which allowed a defendant to withdraw a guilty plea if the court did not follow the sentencing recommendation in a plea agreement, but that provision has since been repealed.”
Smith (Joshua) v. State (Nev. 2019). “Those cases relied on former NRS 174.065(3), which allowed a defendant to withdraw a guilty plea if the court did not follow the sentencing recommendation in a plea agreement, but that provision has since been repealed.”
Smith (Joshua) v. State (Nev. 2019). “Those cases relied on former NRS 174.065(3), which allowed a defendant to withdraw a guilty plea if the court did not follow the sentencing recommendation in a plea agreement, but that provision has since been repealed.”
Show all 15 citing cases →
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 174.065(1) — 1 case
Reeves v. State, 944 P.2d 795 (Nev. 1997). “On a plea of guilty to an information or indictment accusing a defendant of a crime divided into degrees, when consented to by the prosecuting attorney in open court and approved by the court, the plea may specify the degree, and in such event the defendant shall not be punished…”
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 174.065(2) — 1 case
Conger v. Warden, Nevada State Prison, 510 P.2d 1359 (Nev. 1973). “NRS 174.065(2) does, of course, encourage plea bargaining in those cases where the penalty may be death.”
— Nev. Rev. Stat. § 174.065(3) — 11 cases
Stahl v. State, 851 P.2d 436 (Nev. 1993). “The court rejected the joint recommendation, and appellant moved to withdraw his plea pursuant to NRS 174.065(3). 1 The court denied the motion and imposed a sentence to be served consecutively to appellant’s other sentence.”
Lovie v. State, 835 P.2d 20 (Nev. 1992). “The day after the sentencing hearing, appellant filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea pursuant to NRS 174.065(3). The district court denied the motion on the ground that the motion should have been made at the time of sentencing and was therefore untimely.”
Kuykendall v. State, 926 P.2d 781 (Nev. 1996). “Pursuant to former NRS 174.065(3), appellant was entitled to withdraw his plea if the district court sentenced appellant to more than the recommended maximum of ten years under the plea agreement.”
Reeves v. State, 944 P.2d 795 (Nev. 1997). “On a plea of guilty to an information or indictment accusing a defendant of a crime divided into degrees, when consented to by the prosecuting attorney in open court and approved by the court, the plea may specify the degree, and in such event the defendant shall not be punished…”
Fugate (Matthew) v. State (Nev. 2017). “065(3), which "entitle[d] a defendant who has bargained for a particular punishment to receive that punishment at most, or to be given the opportunity to withdraw the plea.”
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