The Criminal Procedure When Arrested For A Felony
Aaron Wilmot
July 11, 2008
When a person is arrested for an alleged felony there will be some things that will be the same for every person arrested. They will be handcuffed, read their constitutionally protected Miranda rights and taken into custody where they will wait to have a hearing in a relatively timely fashion (the right to a speedy trial) to have their bail set. However, often before or after they are charged with a felony crime there will be a time when the police will question the person. This is when a smart person will keep their words to themselves and ask for a criminal attorney to be present. They will also be given the clothing that is worn in that jail and told to put them on.
The charges will be stated to the person and they maybe asked to be in a lineup, asked for writing samples or asked for a hair sample. They will also be fingerprinted and photographed at this particular time. It can be a stressful and traumatic period of time.
Anything that is said when a person is taken into custody can and will be used against them in a court of law and for this reason they should not speak to the police when they are asked questions but instead ask for an attorney to be present. Or at a bare minimum they should consult with their legal representation prior to being interrogated by the law enforcement authorities in question.
There will be an arraignment where the charges will be formally read to them and the person will then either plead no contest (which is similiar to guilty) guilty or not guilty. By pleading not guilty a trial date will be set to present the evidence against them and for their attorney to defend them and prepare their case and cross examination, if applicable. You can find more specific details about this process as well as additional legal news stories over at the Apollo Blog
When the charge is a felony offense it takes an experienced criminal attorney that will be through in preparing the case and will also be aggressive in defending their client in court. For a felony charge in general the defendant needs a specialized felony defense Attorney to either keep them from being sentenced to prison or to get the shortest sentence possible. In these particular cases you will probably want to get someone that is highly experienced: you may want to look for a few grey hairs in this instance.
The charges will be stated to the person and they maybe asked to be in a lineup, asked for writing samples or asked for a hair sample. They will also be fingerprinted and photographed at this particular time. It can be a stressful and traumatic period of time.
Anything that is said when a person is taken into custody can and will be used against them in a court of law and for this reason they should not speak to the police when they are asked questions but instead ask for an attorney to be present. Or at a bare minimum they should consult with their legal representation prior to being interrogated by the law enforcement authorities in question.
There will be an arraignment where the charges will be formally read to them and the person will then either plead no contest (which is similiar to guilty) guilty or not guilty. By pleading not guilty a trial date will be set to present the evidence against them and for their attorney to defend them and prepare their case and cross examination, if applicable. You can find more specific details about this process as well as additional legal news stories over at the Apollo Blog
When the charge is a felony offense it takes an experienced criminal attorney that will be through in preparing the case and will also be aggressive in defending their client in court. For a felony charge in general the defendant needs a specialized felony defense Attorney to either keep them from being sentenced to prison or to get the shortest sentence possible. In these particular cases you will probably want to get someone that is highly experienced: you may want to look for a few grey hairs in this instance.
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