Carlsbad Criminal Defense Lawyer

How to Court Process Works

Types of Crimes in California

Felony: Any crime that is punishable by one year or more in State Prison.
Misdemeanor: These are crimes punishable by up to one year in the County Jail.
Infraction: Punished by a fine only. These consist of most traffic offenses, and some minor criminal offenses, such as trespassing and disturbing the peace.
Wobbler: "Wobblers" are a class of crimes that can be charged either as a misdemeanor or felony at the discretion of the prosecutor. Often wobblers begin as felonies. However, an experienced attorney may be able to convince the Judge to reduce the felony to a misdemeanor, or negotiate a reduction with the prosecutor as part of a plea bargain.
Wobblettes: Similar to Wobblers, except that they may be charged either as a misdemeanor or infraction.

The Attorney's Role in the Process

The attorney ultimately has the goal of getting all charges dismissed, or winning your case at trial. In some cases, the evidence may be overwhelming, and a plea bargain may be in the client’s best interest. The attorney’s role in the plea bargain process is to negotiate the least serious charge possible, and then negotiate the smallest penalty. For example, in a felony case, the attorney may seek a deal that keeps the client out of prison or jail.

It is often a good idea to retain an attorney at the earliest possible moment, even before charges are filed if you have advance notice that you might be charged. Sometimes an attorney is able to convince the prosecutor not to file those charges. However, keep in mind that you may hire a lawyer at any time, no matter, how far along your case may have progressed.

If you cannot afford to hire an attorney, you may request that the court appoint you with a public defender. If the court agrees to the appointment, you have no say who the attorney is selected for you, and are pretty much stuck with whoever is appointed. It also should be kept in mind that public defender's offices typically are overworked and understaffed and therefore have a limited amount of time and resources that can be expended on any particular case. If you are appointed a public defender, the court may require you to reimburse the County for some or all of the costs of the public defender if it is found that you are in a financial position to make such payments.

The Arrest

Felony arrests must be based upon probable cause. While there is no simple test to define probable cause, the police must rely on what they believe to be good information.

Misdemeanor arrests can only be made for crimes which occur in the presence of the person making the arrest. Sometimes civilians are asked to make a "citizen's arrest" even after the police arrive to take the person into custody. A good example of this is the fact that shoplifting arrests are usually made by the store security guard, although the police actually effect the arrest by taking the suspect into custody or issuing a citation.

Bail

Bail first is set by the arresting officer or the watch commander. It normally is set according to a "bail schedule" published by the court in each county. Many defendants are given an OR or an "own recognizance" release, and do not have to pay bail.

Bail is made with cash or bond. A bond requires a 10% fee to a bail bondsman and collateral. The 10% is "spent money" because it is in essence a service charge that is not returned. By contrast, if the entire amount of the bail is paid by cash without resort to a bail bondsman, the entire amount, less a small administrative fee, is returned at the end of the case, provided that the charged person makes his court appearances.

Bail reduction motions can first be made at the arraignment. There also are other limited opportunities to bring a motion to reduce bail.

PC1275.1 Hearings: This statute permits a hold on the release of the defendant until the defendant and his attorney can prove that the funds were not obtained feloniously. This typically arises in cases involving drug sales.

A qualified criminal defense lawyer will be able to assist the defendant in securing release through a bail bondsman.

Decision to File Charges

In California, private citizens DO NOT have the power to "press" or "drop" charges. Only the prosecuting attorney's office has the power to file or drop criminal charges. Therefore, the victim of a crime has no power to "press" or "drop" charges. A typical example of this occurs in spousal abuse cases where the alleged victim reports being abused, has their spouse arrested, but later changes his or her mind and asks that the charges be "dropped." In this situation, prosecutors many times will still proceed with filing the charges and prosecuting the case, even against the wishes of the alleged victim. In fact, these prosecutors are specially trained to deal with “uncooperative” witnesses.

Arraignment

By definition, the Arraignment is when the defendant is formally charged with a crime by the Prosecutor. It is conducted in open court before a magistrate or judge.

In felony cases, all defendants plead Not Guilty at arraignment.

In misdemeanor cases, the defendant usually pleads not guilty, but there are some isolated situations when a guilty plea will entered. No one should ever plead guilty without first discussing the case with a qualified criminal defense attorney. Also, in California misdemeanor cases, the defendant is not required to appear in court if represented by an attorney. Thus, the attorney will generally appear without you to enter the plea of Not Guilty.

California law permits the police to hold a suspect for up to 72 hours after the arrest, exclusive of weekends and court holidays. For example, if you are arrested on a Thursday before a holiday weekend, you can spend up to four or five days in jail before you see a judge. To find out when the first appearance will take place, call the booking information line at the jail, or the arresting agency.

Plea Bargaining

Plea bargaining involves the defense attorney negotiating with the prosecuting attorney to obtain the best possible plea for his client. Sometimes, the judge may also be involved in this process by speaking to the attorneys in an "in chambers" conference. This process may include charging the defendant with a lesser charge, or agreeing to a lesser punishment for the same charge.

Prosecutors agree to a plea bargain in order to ensure convictions, and to clear the court of the ponderous load of cases. A prosecutor would generally favor a plea of guilty to a misdemeanor, rather than risk going to trial on a felony and losing the case altogether.

The Trial

If the case is not earlier resolved by either a plea bargain or by the prosecuting attorney dismissing the charges, a trial will take place. In California, an accused individual has a right to a jury trial for both misdemeanor and felony charges. At this stage of the proceedings, it becomes vitally important that the accused be represented by a competent attorney experienced in handling criminal trials.

Sentencing

If an accused pleads guilty as part of a plea bargain, or is found guilty after trial, the court will then impose a sentence. For felonies and certain misdemeanors a report is usually prepare by the probation department that makes a recommendation to the judge as to what is felt to be an appropriate sentence. Although this report is not binding on the judge, it often is accorded great weight in the judges sentencing decision.

San Diego Criminal Defense limits its practice to San Diego County, California. Communities served include San Diego, Oceanside, Carlsbad, Encinitas, Solana Beach, Del Mar, La Jolla, Pacific Beach, South Bay, Chula Vista, Vista, San Marcos, Escondido, Poway, Rancho Bernardo, La Mesa, El Cajon, Mission Valley, Lakewood, Ramona, and Rancho Santa Fe.