Misdemeanor

When you are charged with a crime, the first step in criminal proceedings is the arrest. After you are arrested, you will be given a date of arraignment. The arraignment date is dependent on the date of your arrest, and is usually scheduled within a few weeks. For all crimes, misdemeanor or otherwise, your arraignment is your first appearance in court. During the time between the arrest and the arraignment, the prosecutor will review what transpired based upon the police report, and after his or her review, will then form charges to bring against you based upon what happened.

The First Step

At the arraignment hearing you will be asked to wait until your name is called. You will be with a number of other defendants awaiting their arraignments or other pretrial hearings. Once you are called in front of the judge, he or she will inform of a few things:

• Charges: The judge will inform you of the charges being brought against you, and what the potential punishments are.
• Right to an Attorney: The judge will then tell you that you have a right to an attorney. If you have selected one, he or she should be present with you and inform the judge of their representation at this time. If you do not have enough money or are under certain circumstances that prevent you from obtaining a lawyer, the court can appoint a lawyer for you to represent you in court.

Plea

The next step in the arraignment process is the plea. This is where a defendant can choose to stop court proceedings or, continue further on to a trial or plea bargaining. A defendant can enter one of three pleas:

• Not Guilty: A plea of “not guilty” signifies that the defendant does not admit to committing the crimes listed in the charges. If this plea is entered, the case will either move forward to trial, or you and your attorney can move to attempt to plea bargain or to “strike a deal” with the prosecutor for lower charges or dismissed charges, depending on the situation
• Guilty: A plea of “guilty” signifies that the defendant admits to committing the crime and accepts the charges and punishments against him. Guilty pleas at the first arraignment hearing are uncommon; it is more common to enter a guilty plea to less severe or reduced charges after you or attorney speaks with the prosecutor.
• No Contest: A “no contest” or “nolo contendere” plea is, in essence, a guilty plea. It signifies that the defendant does not disagree with the charges against him or her. However, the advantage of entering a no contest plea is that the conviction cannot be brought against the defendant in a lawsuit for a civil trial. It is common to see this plea in traffic court, or after plea bargaining.

After the arraignment, depending on the judge, if you were held in jail you may be released, or there may be a bail amount set for your release.

Before a trial can begin, you and your attorney will want to begin preparing. The pre-trial period can be up to about 45 days, or sometimes 30 if you are being held in jail for a misdemeanor. During this time period, you will have to prepare to bolster a solid defense for your trial. At any time you may change your plea to guilty, and your attorney can continue negotiating pleas with the prosecutor as well. If the case is going to go to trial, there are a few things that can be done in preparation.

Discovery

Discovery is the exchange of information relevant to the case between the prosecution and the defense. Each side will be able to see what evidence is being gathered and what method of defense will be employed. In some cases, this may be the only way for a defendant to see what is on the actual police report that the prosecution is using. While it may seem like bad news that your attorney has to reveal what defense strategy will be used, discovery is actually vital to putting up a good defense against the prosecution.

Motion to Suppress Evidence

At times, overzealous and unwarranted police action can result in evidence being obtained against you that is not relevant to the case, that is obtained illegally, or that should not have been obtained in the first place. When this happens your lawyer can file a motion to suppress the evidence that was obtained in this manner. Oftentimes this motions can be written and sent to the court, however, at times your lawyer and the prosecution may need to have a suppression hearing in front of the judge to determine what the proper course of action is. The judge makes the final ruling in these hearings. If your lawyer is successful in suppressing evidence, you may see different charges, or the prosecution may not be able to hold a case.

Motion for Dismissal

A motion for dismissal is a tactic your lawyer can employ to get the court to dismiss the charges altogether. This is often used when a suppression motion removes key evidence, or when the pre-trial proceedings have been delayed, effectively delaying the trial. On top of this, the prosecutor may choose to dismiss charges based upon further plea bargaining or examination of the case. Once dismissed you are free to go and move straight on to the expungement process.

Continued Plea Bargaining

During this time period, your attorney can also continue to plea bargain with the prosecutor. In certain circumstances, if an agreement is reached, you may be looking at reduced charges, and if so, a guilty or no contest plea may put things in your favor. Remember: a trial is a long, grueling, and expensive process for the courts and prosecutors as well as you. The prosecution may want to avoid letting a trial take place and can possibly settle for lower or dismissed charges if the situation continues.

When the time finally comes for trial, you and your attorney should be well prepared for sporting a bold defense against the prosecution. Likewise, the prosecution will come after you for a conviction with everything they have. For many defendants, a trial is a land unknown, and a misdemeanor charge is their only experience with the criminal justice system. In these cases, the courtroom can be nerve-wracking and unfriendly. A good attorney at your side can ease the process and the worry that comes with facing criminal charges, even at the misdemeanor level.

Your lawyer will want to prepare you for the trial process. There are several steps for this.

Jury Selection

For a trial to take place, the courts must obtain a jury. Your lawyer, the prosecutor and the judge will be present for jury selection. The goal of jury selection is the have a group of people that will deliberate fairly and impartially on your case. The lawyers are present because they have the ability to reject certain jurors that they feel will not judge your case and its facts without prejudice. Both sides can “challenge” to remove jurors either “for cause,” meaning that they have a valid reason to remove the juror, or make their challenge “peremptory” meaning that they do not need to prove a cause or reason for removing the juror. Once a jury is put together the trial can begin.

Trial

1. Opening Statements: Each side will deliver their opening statements, where they tell the jury how they will structure their case, and what evidence they will see over the course of the trial.
2. Evidence and Testimony: During this time, evidence and witness testimony will be presented, and each side will have a chance to examine and cross-examine each witness or piece of evidence.
3. Closing Arguments: Finally, each side will deliver their closing arguments to the jury, effectively tying the case together and putting the evidence, witness testimony, and events of the trial in a summary that speaks to the jury in an effort to convince them to serve the desired verdict. The prosecution will rely on showing that a crime was committed and the law was broken. Your defense will want to focus on casting reasonable doubt on the events, and try to show that the prosecution cannot prove that the crime was committed.
4. Deliberation: After the closing arguments are heard, the jury will then go to a deliberation room, where they will privately discuss the matters of the case to reach a unanimous verdict of either “guilty” or “not guilty.” Remember you must be found guilty beyond the standard of reasonable doubt, and it must be unanimous, so if any single juror dissents in a guilty verdict they must all continue to deliberate.
5. Verdict: Finally, after deliberation, your verdict will be served. If you are found “not guilty” you are free to go and you cannot be tried for that same crime again. If you are found “guilty” then you will proceed to sentencing. You can also request to appeal your case in an appellate court.

The court of law can be foreboding and intimidating for anyone facing criminal charges. If you are facing criminal charges and you are in need of a lawyer, contact us today.