Misdemeanor vs. felony offenses

A misdemeanor is an offense that is punishable up to one year in county jail and/or a fine.  A felony is punishable by more than a year in state prison and/or time in the county jail and/or a fine. 

Arraignment

When one is arrested they must be arraigned within 48 hours.  This means that they must be taken before a judge, advised of the charges against them and given an opportunity to plead guilty or not guilty. 

At arraignment several other things occur.  First, bail is usually set by the judge.  Bail can range from nothing to millions of dollars.  In some cases like first offenses or simple misdemanors, the defendant may be released based upon his/her promise to return to court and not have to post any bail.  In other cases such as serious felonies, bail may be set at millions of dollars.  In most counties the court has a bail schedule which sets a specific bail for each specific offense. 

Normally, at the arraignment, the defendant's lawyer will be given a copy of the charges against the defendant and a copy of the initial police reports which have been prepared to date. 

Pre-trial Conference

In the case of misdemeanors, after a defendant pleads not guilty his case often set for a pre-trial conference.  This is an opportunity for the defense attorney to discuss the case and possible settlement with the prosecutor and/or the judge prior to setting the case for trial. 

Preliminary Examination

In the case of felonies, after a defendant pleads not guilty he has the right to a preliminary examination within ten court days of his arraignment.  A preliminary examination or preliminary hearing as it is often referred is a probable cause determination.  At this stage, the prosecutor has the burden of proving that there is a reasonable likelihood that a crime was committed and that the defendant was the one that committed the crime.  If the judge finds that probable cause exists then the defendant is held to answer on felony charges. 

Arraignment in Superior Court

In felony cases, after the defendant has been held to answer on felony charges, he is arraigned again in Superior Court.  Thereafter a trial date is set approximately sixty days later. 

Trial

A defendant in any criminal case has the right to a trial.  In a trial twleve members of the community are called upon to hear all of the evidence in the case.  When the evidence has been heard, the jury is called upon to determine if the defendant is innocent or guilty.  If he is found innocent, or acquitted then he goes free.  If he is convicted then he will face sentencing before the trial judge. 

Probation and Sentencing

At the time of the defendant's sentencing, the judge decides if the defendant will be granted probation or if sentence will be immediately imposed.  In misdemeanor cases, informal probation is normally imposed.  In felony cases, probation can be granted in many cases.  However, just because probation is granted, defendant's can still be sentenced to jail time.  Remember, probation in felony cases simply means that a state prison sentence will not be imposed right away. 

Violations of Probation

If a defendant violates probation, the judge could impose up to the maximum sentence for which the defendant has been convicted.  This applies to both misdemeanors and felonies. 

Appeal 

If a defendant has been wrongly convicted they may have the right to appeal.  A notice of appeal should be filed immediately upon sentencing in many cases. 

Post-conviction remedies

The law allows us to expunge our convictions in many cases where probation is granted.  This applies to both misdemeanors and felonies.  If a defendant has been convicted of a felony, in many cases, that charge can be reduced to a misdemeanor and then expunged.  Expungement is the process where we ask the court to allow the defendant to withdraw their previously entered plea of guilty or no contest or otherwise set aside their conviction and dismiss the case entirely.  This process can be very beneficial to many people.