Orange County Felony Trial
Felony crimes are reserved for those offenses considered most serious. There are many classes of felonies. The prosecution of a felony in Orange County, like a misdemeanor, is handled by the District Attorney’s Office. The District Attorney’s Office represents the People of the State of California for prosecuting both felonies and misdemeanors.
 A felony is an act that has been classified as a crime. A person is arrested for a felony when they violate public law. A felony criminal case occurs when the district attorney decides to take action to punish the person for the felony offense. The first step is that a complaint is filed, and then the individual is arrested. They must appear in court to answer the charges against them.
The arraignment hearing is when the individual arrested, now referred to as the defendant, answers the charges by entering a plea of guilty or not guilty. If they enter a plea of guilty, there will be no trial and they typically receive their sentence from the court immediately. If they enter a plea of not guilty, then the court will set a pre-trial and preliminary hearing.
If the defendant and their lawyer feel it is in the defendant’s best interest to try to negotiate the case with the district attorney or the judge assigned to the case, the pre-trial is their opportunity to do so. If an agreement is reached about the disposition of the case, then the defendant will plead guilty and the court will give them their sentence. If no agreement can be reached, then the case may be set for another pre-trial for further negotiations or proceed to the preliminary hearing. However, if no agreement can be reached, then another pre-trial may be set for further negotiations or the case will continue to the preliminary hearing.
The defendant has the right to a preliminary hearing within 10 court days of their felony arraignment. If the defendant waives that right, then the preliminary hearing must be held within 60 calendar days or a reasonable time after their felony arraignment.
Preliminary hearings are also known as probable cause hearing. The purpose of the preliminary / probable cause hearing is the prosecutor’s opportunity to present witness and evidence to convince the judge there was probable cause to believe a crime was committed and that it was the defendant that committed the crime. A preliminary hearing is only held if there was no grand jury indictment.
At a preliminary hearing a judge hears the case to determine if there is enough evidence to have the defendant answers the charge or charges. Typically, the district attorney only presents part of the evidence at this time. Only what they feel is necessary to have the defendant held for trial.
The defendant must proceed to trial if the judge finds that there is probable cause that the defendant committed the crime or crimes as charged in the complaint. At this point, the case goes on to Superior Court for further pre-trials and then trial. The district attorney office will file an “information” against the defendant in Superior Court. An “information” is similar to a complaint and must be filed after the pre-trial if no disposition was reached.
If the judge determines the prosecutor does not make their case, meaning there is no probable cause that the defendant committed the crime, the charges can be dismissed. Another possibility is that the judge may reduce the case to a misdemeanor for trial.
The next step is for the defendant to be arraigned on the information the district attorney filed after the preliminary hearing. It is filed at the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana within 15 days of the preliminary hearing. Once again, the defendant can plead guilty or not guilty. If the defendant pleads guilty, then there will be no trial and the defendant will receive the sentence that was negotiated at pre-trial. If the defendant pleads not guilty, then their case is set for another pre-trial and/or trial. Since there will be another pre-trial, the defendant’s attorney may try to negotiate the case with the district attorney or the judge assigned to the case. If all parties still cannot reach an agreement, the case will go on to trial.
It is easy to see that there are many complexities in any felony criminal case and you certainly do not want to face this situation by yourself. Call Coffey & Coffey today and get the first-class representation you deserve. We will fight for you and develop the best defense strategy for your case. We only practice in Orange County, so you get a local attorney familiar with Orange County’s criminal courts. This includes judges, prosecutors, expert witness, law enforcement, and the Orange County area. If you are facing any criminal charges, call our office immediately.
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