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Most people know nothing about how the courts operate unless
they have been charged with a crime before. Even then, they may
not have fully understood what was happening. That lack of understanding
often results in so much energy being expended in figuring out
what is going on that attention is distracted from important decisions
the defendant and his or her lawyer have to make. One of the advantages
of having a lawyer is that he or she can explain what is going
on and what is likely to happen next.
Non-traffic Violations
Some non-traffic offenses are first processed in special administrative
municipal courts, which are courts operated by cities and towns.
Other types of violations go to the District Court, operated by
the State, for prosecution; this is the case with most shellfishing
regulations. Usually, however, no matter which court initially
hears the offense, there will be an opportunity for only one trial
with witnesses and evidence.
When a non-traffic violation is processed initially by the District
Court, the defendant will first be asked to enter a plea. There
are three possible pleas: not guilty, guilty or nolo contendere.
A plea of guilty or nolo contendere admits guilt; a not guilty
plea contests guilt and demands a trial. At any criminal proceeding,
whether prosecuted in a municipal court, administratively or in
District Court, all defendants are entitled to testify (only if
they want to), to present witnesses and evidence (only if they
want to), and to challenge the evidence that the other side produces.
It is up to the prosecution to prove guilt. A defendant is entitled
to have a trial even if s/he does not present any evidence at
all.
If there is a guilty finding after a trial in District Court
of a violation, the only way to appeal is to ask the SUPREME
COURT (the highest state court) to review the trial. This
is called petitioning for CERTIORARI
(pronounced ser-shee-o-rar-ee). Certiorari has a similar meaning
to appeal -- both mean that a higher court looks over the action
of a lower court to see if the trial was fair. The difference
is that where there is a right to appeal, the review is guaranteed.
With certiorari, there will be a review only if the higher court
wants to do it. Petitioning for certiorari is a very complicated
procedure. There is no guaranteed right to have counsel appointed
for certiorari, although those who can afford to retain counsel
have the right to do so. If the Supreme Court grants the petition
and agrees to review the case, it will probably appoint counsel
if the defendant is indigent. Generally, the Supreme Court will
agree to review a case only if it appears that the trial judge
made an important mistake of law; if the claim is only that the
judge should have believed different witnesses, review will probably
be denied. A petition for certiorari must he filed within 20 days
of the finding of guilt in the District Court. After that period,
it will be too late.
Misdemeanors
A person charged with a misdemeanor will have to appear in the
District Court. If held overnight by the police in custody, s/he
will be brought to Court the first weekday morning after arrest.
If released by the police from the station, s/he will have to
appear voluntarily at court the next weekday morning. Sometimes
police will issue a SUMMONS
to come to court a few weeks later. It is critical to know when
and where the next required appearance is; a failure to appeal
subjects a defendant to arrest.
The start of a misdemeanor in court is a COMPLAINT:
a formal charge of a crime by the police. The first appearance
in District Court is called an ARRAIGNMENT
(pronounced a-rayn-ment). At this appearance, the charge will
be read and the judge will ask the defendant to PLEAD
guilty, nolo contendere, or not guilty (the only alternatives).
Sometimes, the judge will agree to file the case without any formal
plea (“filing” a case means it is postponed for one
year and if the defendant behaves and is in no further difficulty
with the law, the case is dismissed). The reading of the charge
and the plea is supposed to take place in open court, with the
public and other defendants present. There is a constitutional
right to be arraigned in open court, but that right may be given
up, at the defendant’s choice.
Unless there is a very good reason to do otherwise, a plea at
arraignment should always be “not guilty”. Even if
a defendant feels s/he is guilty, s/he should still plead not
guilty until after an opportunity to consult with a lawyer or
think it over. A guilty plea can always be entered later. A defendant
has the right at almost any time to change his or her plea from
“not guilty” to “guilty.” It is not usually
possible, however, to change from a guilty plea to a not guilty
plea. Once a guilty plea is entered, it usually is permanent.
In addition to the fact that it is very hard to change a guilty
plea, there are other reasons why one should always plead “not
guilty” at arraignment (unless, of course, a lawyer advises
something different). First, pleading “not guilty”
at arraignment allows the defendant some time to prepare for the
disposition of the case at a later date. During that time, s/he
may consult with an attorney to determine whether it appears that
the prosecution can really prove guilt. Sometimes, a defendant
may believe that s/he is guilty but, in fact, no crime under the
law has actually been committed.
Second, most sentencing after a plea of nolo contendere or guilty
occurs in combination with a PLEA
BARGAIN. A plea bargain consists of the defendant pleading
guilty or nolo contendere in return for a specific sentence recommended
by the prosecutor and, often though not always, agreed-to in advance
by the judge. When there is a plea bargain, the defendant does
not plead nolo contendere or guilty unless s/he knows what the
sentence imposed will be. The prosecution may offer to plea bargain
at arraignment with a defendant who does not yet have an attorney,
but a defendant who is not represented by counsel is not in the
best position to know what the best possible plea bargain is.
It is almost always true that an attorney can obtain a more favorable
plea bargain than an unrepresented defendant.
If a plea of guilty or nolo contendere is made at arraignment,
sentencing will probably be immediate and the case will be over.
Many people who plead guilty or nolo at arraignment do so because
they do not want to have to come back to court on another day
(perhaps missing a day of work). In the long run, however, it
is far better to miss a day or so of work than to plead guilty
at arraignment and run the risk of being sentenced to jail. Occasionally,
a person who pleads guilty without a lawyer at arraignment, on
the expectation that he or she will be fined, will be sentenced
to several weeks or months in jail. It is too late to change a
plea back to not guilty after the sentence is discovered.
Two determinations are made at arraignment: a defendant’s
bail status while the case continues, and whether counsel will
be appointed. Indigent defendants who request an attorney are
referred at this point to the Office of the Public Defender for
a financial interview. The Court will then be notified whether
the defendant is eligible for Public Defender representation.
If the defendant is eligible, the Public Defender will enter an
appearance on behalf of the defendant and take over the case from
that point. If the defendant is not eligible, the Court will be
notified, and the defendant may be required to come to Court to
explain whether s/he will be retaining an attorney.
The second event at arraignment is the setting of bail. Bail,
discussed in detail below, is a mechanism to assure the Court
that the defendant will continue to return voluntarily to court
whenever s/he is required to be there. Defendants charged with
most offenses are entitled to have bail set; sometimes, the setting
of bail will require that the defendant deposit an amount of money
with the Court, sometimes not. A defendant’s bail status
may remain the same all the time that a case is pending or it
may change.
If there is a not guilty plea at arraignment, a later date will
be set for trial or DISPOSITION.
Disposition is court jargon that implies that there may be an
eventual guilty or nolo plea. A definite date will almost always
be given in court, and a followup notice might be sent.
With misdemeanors, a defendant is entitled to have a first trial
before a judge in the District Court, and a second trial if s/he
wants to before a jury in the Superior Court. Or, s/he can choose
to bypass the District Court entirely and have one trial in the
Superior Court, before a jury or a judge. In order to have a District
Court trial first, a defendant must file a “waiver of jury”
form in the District Court. Unless this form is filed, the District
Court will send the case to the Superior Court. This waiver of
a jury trial operates only in the District Court. If after a District
Court non-jury trial and conviction, an appeal is taken to the
Superior Court, the choice of judge or jury will be made again.
It is usually an advantage to have a District Court trial first.
Usually before a trial occurs, there is a PRETRIAL
CONFERENCE. At the pretrial conference, the defense lawyer,
the prosecutor, and the judge will sit in the judge’s office
and discuss whether the case should go to trial or whether a plea
bargain is possible. Defendants are not present at the pre-trial
conference, but may be required to be in the courthouse while
it occurs. If a decision is made at the pretrial conference to
have a trial, it may not take place on that day.
The Constitutions of the United States and of Rhode Island guarantee
a jury trial on most crimes. Because there are no jury trials
in the District Court, Rhode Island has a system called a DE
NOVO APPEAL (pronounced day-no-vo). Under this system,
a person found guilty in District Court, has the right to appeal
to the Superior Court by filing a written notice within five days
of sentencing with the Clerk of the District Court. An appeal
not filed in time is lost forever. An appeal taken to the Superior
Court results in an entirely new trial in that court, with a jury,
as if the first trial had never happened: the sentence which the
District Court imposed will be vacated (erased). There are two
disadvantages to a Superior Court appeal. First, it will probably
take a long time before that new trial and the case will remain
pending. Second, the District Court judge may set new and higher
bail pending the Superior Court appeal (see BALL below).
Felonies
Felonies can only be handled to completion by the Superior Court;
the District Court can only handle misdemeanors and violations
to final completion. Usually, however, felonies start in the District
Court, with a police complaint charging a crime. Arraignment will
be held in the District Court similarly to an arraignment for
a misdemeanor except that a “not guilty” plea will
automatically be entered because the District Court cannot take
a nolo or guilty plea to a felony. Only two events can occur in
the District Court on a felony: arraignment and, in most cases,
FELONY SCREENING.
Felony screening, often called Prearraignment Conference, is similar
to a pretrial conference, and is an opportunity for the attorneys
and the judge to discuss the case and the charges that will be
brought in Superior Court. A case can be plea-bargained at felony
screening and, if the defendant pleads guilty or nolo contendere
at that time, the prosecution will end. Felony screening only
occurs with Providence County felonies, and it occurs in the District
Court building.
If there is no plea bargain at felony screening, the case will
be referred to the Superior Court and the Attorney General will
make a determination about what charges will be filed there. The
procedure that will be followed next in the Superior Court will
depend upon what type of felony is charged. Crimes which may be
punished by up to life imprisonment are called CAPITAL
FELONIES. Only a GRAND
JURY can decide to charge a person with a capital felony.
The grand jury is a special jury which decides only whether a
defendant is probably guilty of a crime; it does not decide final
guilt or innocence. A grand jury operates in total secrecy and
the proceedings are closed. If the grand jury believes the defendant
is probably guilty, it will issue an INDICTMENT
listing the charges. If the grand jury believes the defendant
is probably not guilty, it will issue a NO
TRUE BILL and, in most situations, the case will he over.
Witnesses do TESTIFY
before the Grand Jury, but a defendant has no right to be present,
or to testify.
If the crime allegedly committed is a felony but not a capital
one, the Department of the Attorney General will review the case
to determine whether the defendant is probably guilty. If it believes
s/he is, it will issue an INFORMATION,
which functions like an Indictment, in that it is a formal charge
of a crime. If the Attorney General’s review determines
that a defendant is probably not guilty, a NO
INFORMATION will be issued. As with a NO
TRUE BILL, this generally signals the end of the prosecution.
If either an Indictment or Information is issued, the defendant
must appear in the Superior Court for a new arraignment (the arraignment
on an Information may occur in the District Court building; the
arraignment on an Indictment generally occurs in the Superior
Courthouse). All this means is that the case is starting in the
Superior Court. The arraignment in the Superior Court will be
much like the one in District Court, but this time the defendant
will be asked to enter a plea: again, one should never plead guilty
or nolo contendere at arraignment without a very good reason after
consulting with an attorney. This is such a clear rule that most
judges will not even permit a defendant who has no attorney to
plead guilty or nolo contendere to a felony at arraignment.
After the arraignment in the Superior Court, the case will be
continued for further proceedings. A specific date will be selected
for the return to court, usually for a PRETRIAL
CONFERENCE. Almost all defendants in Superior Court have
attorneys, either Public Defender, appointed, or retained, and
the Court generally communicates directly with the attorneys about
court dates. It is critical that both the Court and the defense
attorney have a correct address and means of communicating with
a defendant. A failure to appear in court will often mean a jail
stay. A defendant must come to court for the pretrial conference
unless told not to. This conference, between the judge, defense
lawyer and prosecutor, is the primary opportunity for disposing
of a case without a trial and it usually happens within a few
weeks after Superior Court arraignment. Defendants are given the
opportunity at this time to enter a plea of guilty or nolo contendere,
and the pretrial conference is the routine place for plea bargaining
to occur. Generally, if there is a plea bargain, sentencing will
occur on the same day if the defendant decides to change his or
her not guilty plea (entered at arraignment) to a plea of guilty
or nolo contendere. In an unusual case, sentencing will be delayed
a few weeks. Most felonies are disposed of at the pretrial conference
stage. If a defendant is thinking about pleading guilty or nolo
contendere, but is not sure, the pretrial conference may often
be continued to allow more time to think about the decision.
If no plea of guilty or nolo contendere is entered after the
pretrial conference, the case will be “passed for trial.”
This means that the Court system assumes there will be a trial,
and it will place the case on the trial calendar. There will probably
be a delay of several months after the pretrial conference before
the case comes up again. Sometimes defendants think a case has
“disappeared” because so much time goes by. That is
wishful thinking. Prosecutions do not simply “disappear.”
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