how tp plead

If the State Attorney's Office does not pursue the charges you will not be required to enter any plea. In that case the state will file a No Information, meaning they are not filing an Information charging you with the offense.  The case is over at that point and you will not need to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty in court.  If the State Attorney does file charges one of your options is to plead not guilty at the arraignment and either hire an attorney or ask the court to appoint an attorney from the Public Defender's Office.  Having an attorney appointed from the Office of the Public Defender depends on your finances and assests.  Your other option at arraignment is to plea guilty or no contest to the charge and have the judge sentence you.  If these events did not happen and/or your wife is not seeking prosecution your best option at arraignment is to plea not guilty and get an attorney to handle your case. Regardless, the proper way to handle these types of matters is to have a criminal defense attorney represent you in court, going to court on your own is not a wise decision.