§ 503 Defendant to plead in open court.

When someone is charged with a crime, they have to respond to the charges in front of the judge, in open court. This response can be either a demurrer (a legal argument that the charges are flawed) or a plea (like guilty or not guilty).

This usually happens at the arraignment, which is the first court hearing where the charges are read. But the court can also give the defendant extra time and set a later date for this to happen, if needed.

The main point is that this step cannot be done privately or through paperwork alone. The defendant must show up in court and state their response out loud, on the record.