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Overview of Procedures in A Felony
Case in Federal Court
At
times federal felony cases are not instituted with either an arrest
without a warrant or a person being served with a criminal complaint or
an indictment. Commonly in such situations when no arrest is made to
begin the case, the accused person is notified of an investigation or
receives a "target letter," or a subpoena to appear before a
federal Grand Jury.
(Federal Grand Juries are
similar in composition to State Court, the Federal Grand Juries are
more "investigative" in nature. Still Federal Grand Juries meet in
secret and while the testimony that they receive is recorded by a court
reporter, there are only very few situations in which a transcript of
that testimony may be obtained. Although a defendant may be called to
testify before a Grand Jury, however, the defense attorney is not
permitted to appear in the Grand Jury Room before the Grand Jury or to
present the Defendant's side of the case to the Grand Jury. Therefore,
if a person receives a subpoena to appear before the Grand Jury or an
investigation notice or target letter, he or she should retain an
attorney immediately.
The attorneys in the
Mitchell, Brewer law firm are experienced in handling matters involving
Federal Grand Juries and other aspects of felony cases in the Federal
Courts. You can contact us at any time that you needs us in a federal
felony case.)
After
a person is arrested, a pretrial services or probation officer of the
court immediately interviews the defendant and conducts an
investigation of the defendant's background. The information obtained
by the pretrial services or probation office will be used to help a
judge decide whether to release the defendant into the community before
trial, and whether to impose conditions of release.
When a
person is arrested on a federal complaint or arrest warrant, the person
must be taken before a judicial official (usually a United States
Magistrate Judge) without unreasonable delay (and, in any event, within
24 hours). At that time the judicial official reviews the nature of the
charges and insures that the Defendant is advised of his or her rights
and the nature of the punishment applicable to the crime alleged.
At the
time of that appearance, after considering the pretrial services
report, the judicial official ordinarily will set conditions of release
(commonly called bail). If the prosecutor is seeking to have the
accused person detained in jail prior to trial the court may conduct a detention
hearing to determine whether the person should be allowed to be
released or should be detained in jail pending the trial.
A detention
hearing is a very important proceeding in a federal case. Usually
the determination made as to whether to detain a person pending the
trial is made by a United States Magistrate Judge and ordinarily
remains in effect until the trial although there are some available
appeal remedies for such a determination. Therefore, it is particularly
important for a person who has been charged to have an attorney
representing him or her at the detention hearing.
At a
detention hearing the court must determine whether the accused person
is a danger to the community and/or whether he or she is likely to fail
to appear. If the Defendant is found to be (1) a risk of flight or (2)
to pose a danger to people in the community, then the court will order
detention and deny "bail." Defendants re-leased into the community
before trial may be required to obey certain restrictions, such as home
confinement or drug testing, and to make periodic reports to a pretrial
services officer to ensure appearance at trial. It is very important
for the Defendant's attorney to make a strong presentation of evidence
to show that the person is neither a risk of flight nor a danger to
persons in the community.
Very
quickly after the detention hearing the Court will enter a written scheduling
order directing certain procedures in the case. Usually the time
periods in the scheduling order are very short. For example, the scheduling
order will often direct the defense attorney and the prosecutor to
meet within a certain period of time for a discovery conference.
At the
discovery conference the Government attorney
is obligated to provide certain limited written information to the
attorney for the defendant which describes the nature of the case
against the defendant and reveals information concerning the evidence
against the defendant. In federal cases, unlike most state criminal
cases, a broader category of reciprocal discovery applies and the
attorney for the defendant (or the defendant himself or herself) must
provide certain kinds of information to the United States Attorney.
Also,
the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure require a defendant to disclose
certain information such as notice of intent to use an alibi defense.
Failure to provide notice of the use of such a defense as alibi or
insanity may preclude its use at trial.
The
Court's scheduling order also usually directs the filing of motions.
These "motions" are written requests and or defenses which must be
supported by a written memorandum of law or brief asking the Court to
make rulings which could affect whether the case could be tried or how
it would be tried. For example, defense attorneys often file a motion
to sup-press evidence, which asks the court to exclude from the trial
evidence that the defendant believes was obtained by the government in
violation of the defendant's constitutional rights.
The
scheduling order will generally set a strict deadline for the filing of
the following motions: motions to dismiss; motions for change of venue;
motions challenging the array of the grand jury and other motions
challenging the charges. The scheduling order also usually specifies a
specific time within which responses to these motions and briefs.
Usually
these motions and briefs are reviewed by a United States Magistrate
Judge and, depending on the nature of the motion, a definitive ruling
will be entered by the magistrate judge or he or she will make a
recommendation to the United States District Judge. Limited times are
allowed for the filing of appeals or objections to the Magistrate
Judge's ruling or recommendation.
After
rulings have been made on the motions, if the motions do not result in
a dismissal of the case (which only very rarely occurs), then the case
is set for trial. At trial, the procedures applicable to selection of
the jury and presentation of the evidence apply. A defendant's rights
under the United States constitution to a fair trial before an
impartial jury is the highest pinnacle of felony criminal defense.
In a
criminal trial, the burden of proof is on the government. Defendants do
not have to prove their innocence. Instead, the government must provide
evidence to convince the jury of the defendant's guilt. The standard of
proof in a criminal trial is proof "beyond a reasonable doubt," which
means the evidence must be so strong that there is no reasonable doubt
that the defendant committed the crime.
If a
defendant is found not guilty, the defendant is released and the
government is not permitted to appeal. Similarly, the person acquitted
cannot be charged again with the same crime in a federal court. The
Constitution prohibits "double jeopardy," or being tried twice for the
same offense.
This
outline of case procedure up to the trial is important and applies in
felony cases generally. However, it is important to understand that
each case is different and while these general principles will apply,
case specific aspects will affect how any particular case proceeds. It
is important for anyone who is charged with an offense to consult with
his or her own attorney for legal advice.
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© 2000 Ronnie M.
Mitchell - no claim to government works or copyrighted materials
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