Initial Appearance Vs Arraignment Hearing

An arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal charge document in the presence of the defendant to inform him of the charges against him. In response to an arraignment the accused is expected to enter a plea. Acceptable pleas vary among jurisdictions, but they usually include “guilty”, “not guilty”, and “nolo contendere”

The next step in the system is initial appearance. Here they are given formal notice of the charges against them and advised of their rights.(Bohm & Haley, 2008, p. 13) The movie included this in their depiction of the criminal justice system. In the movie they called it the arraignment. The arraignment is where the defendant either pleads guilty or not guilty. During this stage the bail is also set which was also done in the movie. In the movie the set the preliminary hearing for the next morning in which the witnesses testified to what they saw and heard. This allows the judge to decide if there is probable cause to make and indictment. Based upon the information we have learned it seems that the arraignment should have happened after the preliminary hearing and that the

Once arresting, officers must inform “the accused” that he has the right to remain silent, anything he says can and will be used against him in the court of law. He has the right to an attorney or have an appointed attorney if she cannot pay for one; and have an attorney present during questioning. If he wants to assert these rights, he must affirmatively say so. The process of reading the defendant his rights should take no more than five minutes. Within forty-eight after an arrest, he must be taken before a judge. The judge must inform the accused of the charges against him and whether there is an affidavit supporting the charges. The judge also must inform the defendant of his rights as well. The initial appearance before a judge can last anywhere between one to two hours. Next there are time limits on filing charges. If he cannot post bond and remains in jail, the prosecutor must file charger against him by complaint, which can take fifteen to ninety days for any felony. Then the prosecutor must file the charges against him by complaint. If he is not in jail, then the prosecutor

The criminal trial process is an interesting process that takes place in Courtrooms all across the United States and throughout the globe. This study intends to set out the various steps in the criminal trial process in the American justice system. A trial is described as a "legal forum for resolving individual disputes, and in the case of a criminal charge, it is a means for establishing whether an accused person is legally guilty of an offense. The trial process varies with respect to whether the matter at issue is civil in nature or criminal. In either case, a jury acts as a fact-finding body for the court in assessing information and evidence that is presented by the respective parties in a case. A judge presides over the court and addresses all the legal issues that arise during the trial. A judge also instructs the jury how to apply the facts to the laws that will govern in a given case." (3rd Judicial District, 2012)

The criminal trial process has many aspects which aim to balance the rights of victims, offenders and society, including plea bargains and charge negotiations, the ability of defendants to hire legal representation and complete and partial defences. However, these processes do not always succeed in completely achieving justice for victims, offenders and society.

Explain what an arraignment is and what occurs during an arraignment. Arraignment is when John is taken in front of a judge. At that time, he can request legal counsel, either from a private attorney or from a public defender. He could also waive the right to counsel and defend himself. At that time he will enter his plea and possibly be given a bail amount. When John goes

Well, a defense is entitled to request an evidentiary hearing at the time of sentencing, but you do have to give notice of that if you wanted to present testimony at the time of the sentencing.

While adult cases are held in adult criminal court, with offenders being tried by a jury of their peers, juvenile cases are referred to as adjudication hearings and do not involve a jury. Prior to a trial, an adult offender may be placed on bail. A youthful offender has a special hearing in order to determine if they will be allowed to remain with parents or an adult guardian outside of a detention center.

Initial hearing or arraignment, this is the first court appearance where a formal reading of felony or misdemeanor charges will be presented by a judge or magistrate and bail will be determined. The formal reading is also known as a complaint and the appointed judge will identify the specific charge(s) and the maximum penalty if found guilty (Nichols, n.d). Once the complaint is read, the defendant will be provided the opportunity to obtain a court appointed attorney under the Sixth Amendment if one has not already been provided. It is worth noting that during arraignment; if misdemeanor charges are identified then the defendant has the opportunity to enter a plea of guilty, not guilty or no contest (Nichols, n.d.). Under misdemeanor charges,

bail or detention, or after preliminary hearing the charge is dismissed or dropped ( Bohm and Haley,

On Wednesday, April 6, I attended a court hearing at the Sonoma County Superior Court. At 8:15am I sat out in front of court room one, many of the people there were reading this paper out on the front of the court room which was the criminal calendar. Which sets the time and date to be called to in court. I entered court room one, which were all felony trials that were taking place. We all took our seats and sat down before the honor of Robert M. Laforge. To the right in front of me were the people who were being prosecuted, eight of them were males and two were females. Some of them had the same attorney who appointed to act for them in front of the judge. While in the court room I noticed many of their family members, or people whom they might have known in the court sitting beside me. First we had the arraignment which is when each of the criminals came before the court and the judge read out the criminal charges that were against them. Each of the defendants had a counsel appointed to them. After having read the charges to the defendant, a court appearance date was set, in which most of them were a preliminary hearing because most of the charges against the criminal were felonies. Many of the cases that were going out had to schedule for a preliminary trial which is a trial before a trial to see if the defendant is guilty or not guilty, and if there is even enough evidence to actually hold a trial. Most of the cases I observed were in the case of assault, in which one

In every case whether that be criminal or civil there is going to be a judge that oversees the proceedings. They also have a say on who is picked to sit on the jury, or acts as the jury when one is not applicable. The judge makes sure that each party has adequate speaking times and that chaos does not occur throughout the trial. As stated by Garland (2015), the judge’s duty is to maintain control over the conduct of those involved and if needed can exercise the power of contempt. Contempt is given when a person(s) becomes disorderly and disruptive to the proceeding which may result in being held in jail over a period of time, or result in paying fines. In a court case, there are many important people involved. One being the prosecutor. The

With a bail hearing within 24 hours of being arrested, where a judge decides if a person can be released on bail, and if so, how much the bail will cost. There are several factors that go into the decision, and several factors that you can use to reduce the required amount, or consequently, increase it. Knowing how to implement these factors into your case could be the difference between waiting at home and waiting in a jail cell, and the best way to implement them is by having an experienced criminal defense attorney at your

A criminal prosecution usually begins with an arraignment: A preliminary hearing (aka a prelim, a probable cause hearing, PX and a preliminary examination) is very similar to an arraignment, but it provides the defendant a greater opportunity for counter-argument. In essence, a preliminary hearing is ‘a trial before the trial.’ It is during the preliminary hearing that the judge or magistrate decides whether there is enough evidence for the accused to stand trial. When making his or her determination, the judge/magistrate uses what is referred to as the ‘probable cause’ legal standard. This standard helps him or her decide whether the prosecution has produced a sufficient amount of evidence to convince a jury of the defendant's guilt.

Roanoke County General District Court has two sides. One side is for criminal cases and the other side is for traffic cases. The judges rotate between the courts, so you never know which judge you will have. From my time in court I have seen many differences between traffic and criminal cases. In the room that primarily does traffic cases (Court Room 2), they start off the day with arraignments. Arraignments usually last about thirty minutes. This is where people that have been charged with a crime are told by the judge what they have been charged with and the time they could face incarcerated if they are convicted. The judge can also set bail for the defendant and will determine if they plan to hire an attorney or have one appointed to them. Many of the people in this process are already in jail and have had their initial appearance with a magistrate. At this stage, guilt or innocence is not determined and the court date is set for a later date.