For a misdemeanor case, the defendant has the right to a speedy trial and the law will determine when a defendant will be brought to court. However, the trial must start within 30 days of the arraignment or plea, IF the defendant was in custody at the time of the arraignment. If the defendant wasn’t in custody at the time of the arraignment, the trail will start within 45 days of the plea or arraignment. Either one depends on what was later, the plea or the arraignment.

The defendant can choose to go to trail after the deadline, thereby waiving his rights to a speedy trial. Even so, the trail will be set to start within 10 days after the trail date is set. It’s best to get the advice of your lawyer before deciding to waive your rights.

As with a misdemeanor case, the law will determine when the defendant of a felony case will be taken in to trial. the trial will be set to start within 60 days of the arraignment of the Information that the prosecutor must submit within 15 days of the date when the defendant was at the preliminary hearing.

The defendant in a felony case can waive their rights to a speedy trail as well but this means they will have their trail after the 60-day deadline. Again, before waiving any rights it’s best to consult your lawyer.

A court trial is when there is only a judge to make a ruling on the defendant’s guilt.

A jury trial is chosen when the defendant wants to have the evidence seen and heard by a group of his/her peers. This jury will then have to decide on the guilt of the defendant. The jury is chosen by first gathering a random selection of people to build your jury from. Both the defense team and the prosecution team along with the judge ruling over the trial will help in making the jury selection. Choosing a jury is a long and rigorous procedure and every detail of the person’s lifestyle, character and moral judgement is scrutinized before a judgement is made on whether or not they will be on the jury.

Before this trial, the prosecution with exchange any information with the defense. The defendants will be restricted to what information they are about to access as a precautionary measure to protect all the witnesses involved in the case. The lawyers will have access to this information however to best present their case to the court.

Also at this time, both sides of the case will be able to file motions such as motions to cancel a complaint or to dismiss the case, etc. The defendant can change their plea before the trial as well and the judge and lawyers may go into discussions about how to avoid a trial all together and settle this case outside of court.

The defendant can change their plea before the trial and the defendant and prosecutor can file pretrail motions; for things from motions to set aside a complaint to issues with evidence being included in the trial. During this time the judge and lawyers for both sides will be able to discuss how to resolve the case and avoid going to trail. For more information please call the criminal defense attorney in Orange County to discuss your case.

Next, if the defendant happens to be in custody at the time of the arraignment, the judge will either:

-Release the defendant with a promise to return for their court date ( recognizance),
-Set an amount for bail and then return the defendant to jail to wait for bail to be posted,
-Send the defendant back to jail without setting bail.

 Orange County criminal defense attorney ready to help you with your criminal defense case.

Next, the prosecutor will consider pressing charges and what whether to charge you with a felony or a misdemeanor crime. He/she will need to decide to change you on all or just some of the accusations that was filed in the police report. This will need to be filed within 48 hours of the arrest. The 48 hours does not include holiday, weekend or mandatory court closures.

Once in jail, 1 of 3 things happen:

-The defendant remains behind bars and law enforcement officers will take the accused to their arraignment hearing in court,
-The defendant may be released if the prosecutor decides not to prosecute or file charges. This prosecutor is often times the district attorney or an attorney representing the city, or
-The defendant is released with a promise to return to court for the arraignment at a later date or if the defendant makes bail. If either of these happen the police or district attorney will give them the dates to appear for their upcoming arraignment.

To get more information, contact the Top Criminal Defense Attorney for Orange County to help you with your case at 714-655-3747.

For information about how to protect yourself and file for a restraining order, call the offices of the Top Personal Injury Attorney for Orange County at 714-655-3747.

Each traffic infraction could cost you $435 or more.

If you are caught by photo either at a red light or at a railroad-grade crossing, you will receive a notice in the mail about how to proceed with your ticket.

If you plead guilty, you won’t have to go to court but you will have to pay the fine by mail, or go to traffic school. If you pay the fine, you will get points on your driving record and your car’s insurance might increase in cost. If you want to contest the ticket but do not what to appear in court, you can have a trail by mail which is also called a trial by written declaration.

If you decide to neither pay the ticket nor appear in court, your license may be suspended and you might be charged with a misdemeanor and the courts may issue a warrant for your arrest.

For more information on your rights, contact the Criminal Law Attorney for Orange County at 714-655-3747.

If you don’t go to court or pay the fine, your license can be suspended and the court can charge you with a misdemeanor and issue a warrant for your arrest.

-Your Case Number(s) [Also called a docket number]
-Your Date(s) of Conviction(s) [The date of your plea or verdict]
-The Code Name(s) and Section Number(s) you were convicted of violating.
-Was there a “Verdict” or did you “Enter a Plea”? If you Entered a Plea, was it “Guilty” or “Nolo Contendere” (No Contest)?
-Were you ordered to serve any time on “Probation”? If so, how long? [Formal and informal probation are treated the same]
-Were you ordered to pay any fines, restitution, or reimbursement?
-If you were sentenced to state prison, which one and what date were you released?
-If you were released on “Parole,” what date did your parole end?

For more information please contact the Criminal Defense Lawyer in Orange County Thomas Connor for a consultation at 714- 655-3747.