Magistrate Richards does not consider guilty with explanation a plea.

Charged for common assault, allegedly committed on May 26, 2011 at Cane Garden Bay but only appearing in court on November 14, 2011, Nelson Myers told the magistrate he was pleading guilty with explanation, but was told that she could not accept that as a plea.

The magistrate explained that assault could be lawful if it was committed in an act of self-defence therefore the defendant could plead not guilty and that there were only two options when pleading - guilty or not guilty.

Our research tells us that in the English system, a plea is regarded as voluntary if the defendant, properly advised as to the possible alternatives by his counsel, has the freedom in his own mind to choose the plea he will make. In his case the defendant, who was unrepresented, was advised of his alternatives by the magistrate. Interestingly, until 1772, if a defendant refused to plead guilty or not guilty, his trial was delayed from taking place, and he was tortured until he either died or entered a plea! This was changed to allow the judge to enter a plea of not guilty if the defendant refused to plead.

Mr. Nelson then pleaded guilty.

In legal terms, a plea is simply an answer to a claim made by someone in a civil or criminal case under common law using the adversary system. Colloquially, a plea has come to mean the assertion by a criminal defendant at arraignment, or otherwise in response to a criminal charge.

According to Wikepedia, a "blind plea" is a guilty plea entered with no plea agreement in place. One defendant accused of illegally protesting nuclear power, when asked to enter his plea, stated, "I plead for the beauty that surrounds us". This type of unorthodox plea is sometimes referred to as a "creative plea," and will usually be interpreted as a plea of not guilty. Likewise, standing mute and refusing to enter any plea at all will usually be interpreted as a not guilty plea; the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, for instance, state, "If a defendant refuses to enter a plea or if a defendant organization fails to appear, the court must enter a plea of not guilty.