Criminal Procedure

California Criminal Procedure

Arraignment
The first stage of a criminal case is the arraignment. This is the very first appearance in court, where a defendant officially learns what the charges are. The charges are listed in a document called the "complaint". Bail conditions and amount are often set at the arraignment. The defendant is given the option to plead "guilty" or "not guilty". If a defendant pleads "not guilty", then the judge will continue the case to to another court date known as the pretrial hearing. 
In some counties, the District Attorney`s office will have representatives at the arraignment court to begin negotiations on a case. In other counties, negotiations can only occur at the pretrial stage, after a defendant pleads "not guilty". 
Before the judge sets another date for the pretrial appearance, the judge will ask if the defense is willing to "waive time". 
In misdemeanor cases, a defendant has right to a trial within 45 days of the arraignment, unless the defendant chooses not to exercise that option. In felony cases, a defendant has the right to preliminary hearing within 10 court days or 60 calendar days of the arraignment, unless the defendant chooses to give up those options. Giving up the option of having a speedy trial or preliminary hearing is known as "waiving time". Attorneys will often advise their clients to "waive time" because it might be advantageous to postpone the trial or preliminary hearing. 

Pretrial
Once a defendant pleads "not guilty", the defense attorney meets with the prosecutor in court to discuss the case. This stage is known as a pretrial appearance. There can be many pretrial appearances -- as long as it takes for the defense attorney and the prosecutor to resolve the case. However, if no resolution is reached, then misdemeanor cases are set for trial and felony cases are set for preliminary hearing.

Post-Preliminary Hearing
In felony cases, after the preliminary hearing, a second arraignment occurs. At this second arraignment, the District Attorney`s office files a document called the Information. The Information is similar to the "complaint" and it contains all the charges against the defendant. Again, the defendant enters a plea of "guilty" or "not guilty". If the defendant pleads "not guilty", then the court will set a trial date with an interim "trial readiness conference" so that both sides can meet to determine if they are ready for trial. 

Trial
A defendant who does not accept either the District Attorney`s offer to resolve the case or the court`s offer to resolve the case must eventually have a trial. At trial, the prosecution must prove that the defendant is guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt" for every charge alleged. Normally, the prosecution must prove their case before a jury of twelve people and these twelve people must unanimously agree as to whether the defendant is "guilty" or "not guilty". However, if the defendant does not want a jury trial, he/she can elect to have a court trial or bench trial, where only a judge hears and decides the evidence. 
 

Sentencing 
If a defendant is convicted, either by pleading guilty or conviction after trial, then there can be a separate hearing to determine the defendant`s sentence (or punishment). If the crime involved a victim, then the victim has the right to be present at the sentencing and to give a statement to the judge. At these proceedings, the prosecutor and the defense attorney will each argue for what they believe is the appropriate sentence. The judge will consider the facts of the case, as well as the defendant`s prior record (if any), input from the victim, and any other relevant information, before determining the sentence. 

Appeal
If a defendant was unfairly convicted, either by plea or trial, then the defendant can appeal the conviction.