Criminal Court Process
The Criminal Court Process is a bit intimidating if you are not familiar with in. Each Court House has it’s own methods of handling the docket and each Judge has their own particular methods and standards in dealing with court dates, continuances, trials, and lawyers. That is another reason it is a good idea to hire a criminal defense lawyer that appears routinely before your particular Judge.
When a person is arrested and is unable to bond out because of financial limitations or there is not bond set, that person will be brought before a duty judge with in 24 hours of their arrest. This is called the preliminary presentment. Many courts call it different things, pp court, first appearance, magistrate, but throughout Florida it has the same purpose. This is when the Court advises you of the charge you were arrested on. Sometimes the Court will consider a bond reduction or setting a bond amount. In misdemeanor cases, the Court will many times entertain a plea offer from the state or extend one themselves. Again this depends on the Jurisdiction and the Judge.
From a professional standpoint, it is a bad idea to plea to a misdemeanor charge at the preliminary presentment. This is for many reasons. The main one is that there has been no opportunity to discuss the matter with a lawyer. For instance you could plead to a misdemeanor battery charge just because it is easier and the deal sounds great. What you do not know is that the conviction for that battery can be used later to enhance another battery charge in the future. There is no way to know the repercussions of a plea until you have spent some time and spoken to a criminal defense lawyer. Another reason that I consider it a bad idea to plea so early is that you might have a defense. For instance, the battery you were going to plead to could be defended as self defense or mutual combat. Drug charges can often be defended through motions to suppress when the police act improperly. By entering a plea you give up the right to challenge the evidence or the State’s case against you, as well as other valuable rights.
However, pleading at such an early stage could be beneficial in some circumstances. These include pleading to a charge before the state realizes that it could be enhanced to a felony or other similar reason. Again, the only way to know this is to discuss these options with a criminal lawyer before deciding.
ARRAIGNMENT
Whether the accused is in jail or out on bond, at some point the arraignment will Occur. Arraignment is nothing more then entering an initial plea of either guilty, nolo contendre, or not guilty. If you enter a guilty or nolo plea you will be sentenced or sentencing will be continued to give yoru lawyer time to prepare for sentencing.
Once a not guilty plea is tendered and accepted, several things will begin to happen. For one thing the Court will set your case for a pretrial conference and discovery will begin if requested by the defense lawyer. Discovery is the process wherein the State will provide the defense lawyer with copies of police reports, witness lists, and any exculpatory evidence. The State must also disclose whether their is any electronic evidence such as wiretaps, recordings, or other electronic information. Additionally, the state must provide the defense with any statements made by the defendant.
The Defense is also required to provide the State with any witnesses that they have and any information about alibi.
PRE TRIAL or DISPOSITION
This is simply a hearing where the Defense advises the court of where in the process they are are and if the case is ready to be set for trial, is ready to be plead to, or if additional time is necessary to complete the discovery process.
PLEA OR TRIAL
At some point the case will either have to be plead to or trial be started and completed. During the discovery process a defense lawyer will try and negotiate a favorable resolution to the case, if the client consents. If the state and the defendant are able to reach an agreement as to what charge will be plead to and what the sentence will be the case will be resolved with a plea. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement then the Defendant can still enter an open plea and leave it up to the Court for sentencing. if the Defendant wants a trial then a trial will be set.
TRIAL
The trial is where members of the public are brought in for jury duty. The state and defense will be involved in selecting a jury. Once the jury is selected and sworn in, the state will make their opening statement followed by the defense’s opening statement. After opening statements, teh state presents their case and after they rest, the defense puts on their case by calling witnesses, if they so choose. After the Defense rests, the state can put on a rebuttal case. After which time the State will make two closing arguments one before the defenses argument and one after. The Jury will then deliberate.
