When arrested in Richmond Hill, GA, your first court appearance will be at the arraignment. During arraignment, the judge reads the charges filed against you in the complaint and you have to plead “guilty,” “not guilty” or “no contest” to those charges. The judge will also review your bail and fix dates for future proceedings. A preliminary hearing, or preliminary examination, is an adversarial proceeding in which lawyers examine witnesses and both parties make arguments. The judge then determines the final finding of probable cause. In a grand jury, only the prosecutor is heard by the jury. The grand jury may call their own witnesses and request that further investigations be done. The grand jury then decides whether sufficient evidence has been presented to indict the defendant. If you have been convicted, you generally can appeal. A seasoned Richmond Hill, GA criminal appeal law firm will ask the higher court to overturn the trial court’s decision based on legal or procedural errors. The judges on appeal are looking for errors which may have changed the decision. In a appeal, you submit written “briefs” to the court, along with a copy of the trial court transcript and any exhibits that were used at trial. Oral arguments may be scheduled. Arguments are typically very short in duration, and tend to be academic in nature, focusing on legal issues. In an appeal, the higher court looks for errors in the decision of the trial court. If the higher court finds errors in the trial court’s decision, the appeal court may direct a re-trial or set aside the conviction.
————————-Savannah GA DUI Lawyer – Georgia Criminal Defense Attorney
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