The old saying “knowledge is power” couldn’t be more relevant if your or a loved one is arrested in New Jersey. Understanding the criminal justice process allows you to have more control over your decision making. It can give you the confidence to help develop a plan with your attorney to help defend your rights with a solution that is most suitable to your needs.
Taking the mystery out of the criminal justice process not only helps you understand your criminal defense needs, but also helps you understand the significance of important dates and deadlines.
First Appearance
Whether you are arrested for drugs, guns, burglary, domestic violence, or any other crime, you will be charged on a warrant or a summons. If you are arrested on a summons, you will be released from custody and given a court date in the near future. If you are arrested on a warrant, you will be taken to the county jail where you will appear before a judge typically within 24-48 hours.
At your first appearance, you will receive a copy of your complaint and notified of your rights. If you are in custody, you will be notified by the judge either with the conditions of your pre-trial release or that a detention motion has been filed.
The Detention Hearing
If the prosecutor makes a motion to detain you until trial, the judge will consider a risk assessment tool based on your current charges, prior record, prior record of non-appearances, and any other information bearing on the risk that you will not appear or commit an offense while on pretrial release. This information can include your juvenile history, the weight of the evidence, and the risk to the safety of the community. At your detention hearing, your attorney will make all relevant arguments on your behalf. The judge could determine that you should be held without bail or set condition of pre-trial release. Conditions of release can vary between a release on your own recognizance all the way up to strict home detention.
Pre-Indictment Proceedings
After your first appearance, and regardless of whether you are detained or not, your case will progress towards pre-indictment court. The State will review your case and the evidence they have to determine how they will proceed. They will choose to pursue the charges filed against you, seek to have your charges downgraded, or recommend your charges be dismissed.
You will receive a court date in which you and your attorney can decide to continue on the path towards trial or come to a resolution with the State that is most favorable to you.
Indictment and Arraignment
If your matter is not resolved pre-indictment, the next step is grand jury. 23 grand jurors hear evidence by the State and determine whether enough probable cause exists to formally indict you of your criminal charges. It is a one-sided proceeding, and it is incredibly rare for you to attend this portion of the legal process. Your attorney or even the judge are not present either.
If you are indicted, you will be scheduled to appear for an arraignment within 14 days. Plea bargaining negotiations can still continue during and after this process or after consultation with your criminal defense attorney. Additionally, your attorney might move forward with motion practice if they determine there are weaknesses in the state’s case.
Plea Bargaining
After speaking with your attorney, sometimes you will determine that negotiating a favorable resolution prior to trial is in your best interest. Depending on the facts and circumstances of your case, your attorney might be able to negotiate – downgrade of your charges; reduction in probation and/or incarceration time; dismissal of some or all of your charges.
Diversionary Programs
Diversionary Programs offer an alternative path of prosecution for those facing criminal charges. The three diversionary programs potentially available are the Pretrial Intervention Program (generally available to most first-time offenders charged with nonviolent offenses), the Veterans Diversion Program (generally available to active and retired members of the military accused of nonviolent crimes who have been diagnosed with mental illness and/or suffer from addiction), and Recovery Court (generally available to drug/alcohol dependent individuals facing nonviolent crimes)
Criminal Trial and Sentencing
If your case does not resolve, it will move towards a trial date. At a trial, a jury examines the evidence to decide whether, " beyond a reasonable doubt," you committed the crimes charged against you. The prosecution presents its case first, and your attorney will use the available evidence (or lack of) to show the jury that the state has not met its burden.
If the jury returns a guilty verdict on your charges, the judge will order a pre-sentence investigation, and then impose a sentence in accordance with our sentencing laws. Even at the sentencing stage, your attorney will advocate on your behalf.
The articles on this blog are for information purposes only and should not be considered as legal advice or the initiation of the attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact this law firm directly.
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