 When faced with the daily dramas of real criminal cases, be prepared for proceedings that look quite a bit different from those portrayed on prime time television. By understanding the process, one can obtain a realistic view of the judicial system, be better prepared for key parts of a case, and witness a process that viewers of Boston Legal and Law & Order never see.
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 In state and federal cases throughout the United States, criminal investigations are generally orchestrated by prosecutors, police and other members of law enforcement.
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 Generally, there are two ways to press charges in a criminal case: (1) by the filing of a criminal complaint, sometimes called a statement of charges or a "criminal information"; or (2) in the form of an indictment returned by a grand jury.
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 Whether probable cause is established in a criminal complaint, or through a formal grand jury indictment, an accused is often arrested after the issuance of a formal arrest warrant.
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After an accused is arrested, she is brought before a judge in a proceeding known as an arraignment. There, bail will be set and the lawyers may engage in plea discussions.
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 In the federal system, prosecutors must generally persuade a grand jury
that there is probable cause to indict a particular defendant with a specific crime. This process is used in state cases as well, but there are more instances in which defendants are charged with crimes in state courts without being formally indicted.
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 Unlike civil cases, where much of the litigation process is devoted to pretrial discovery, pretrial discovery is an extremely small and limited part of a criminal case. |
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 Absent a plea deal, many cases involve pretrial hearings in which the prosecution and the defense lawyers bicker over the admissibility of evidence and the viability of the charges themselves.
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 Absent a plea agreement or pretrial dismissal of the case, the accused must stand trial before a judge or a jury, as the prosecution and defense present witnesses, evidence, arguments and objections.
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 Following a guilty verdict, the accused may file motions to set the
verdict aside or ask the court for a new trial based upon a variety of irregularities or evidence problems arising during the course of the trial.
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 If convicted, defendants typically seek relief from adverse judgments through two methods: Appeals and petitions for writs of habeas corpus.
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Criminal Cases 