Depending on the county you are charged in, your experience with the justice system might vary in some respects. However, the following steps are generally accepted as necessary in every county. If you are arrested at the time you are accused of committing a crime, the State of Oklahoma has ten (10) days to file charges against you before they must release you from commitment in whatever county facility you are being held in. If the State of Oklahoma does not file charges in ten (10) days, you will be released, but they can still file charges against you.
Once the State files charges on you, you will be arraigned. The timing for arraignment varies if you are in custody at the time of filing or if you are out of custody at the time of filing. Either way, you will be given an arraignment date wherein you will be officially informed of the charges the State has filed against you, and you will be informed of your bail amount for those specific charges. If you’ve already posted bond, you might have to post more bond if the charges for which you were originally arrested for are different than the ones the State files.
At arraignment, you will be given a new court date and at that point, it is imperative that you have an attorney appear with you at each and every stage of your case from that point onward. Depending on the county you are charged in, your subsequent court appearances will be termed a preliminary hearing conference, a preliminary announcement docket, a disposition docket, etc. At this stage, your attorney will be conferencing with the assigned district attorney to discuss your case.
You may either decide to demand a preliminary hearing or waive your hearing. This is an area that you must discuss with your attorney and decide what’s best for you. No two cases are alike and there is no formula for knowing what is best for you. Without the legal advice of an attorney, however, you may make the wrong decision. Don’t let that happen to you.
Once you have either waived or been bound over for trial, you will have court appearances before the District Judge assigned to your case. At this point if a dismissal is not appropriate, you must decide to plead or demand a jury trial. Again, this is a very important decision and having an experienced and knowledgeable attorney can help you to make the right decision.
If you do demand a jury trial, this is the final step in the trial level defense of your case. Depending on your case, your attorney will take various steps to build the best defense for your case. The longer your attorney has been involved in your case, the better off you will be in successfully building your defense.
Finally, there is no specific timeline for how a criminal case will proceed. Some cases can be over in as little as a few months, and some cases can take as long as a year or two or even more. The best way to know what consequences you are facing and what sort of timeline your charge or charges carry is to consult an attorney who can advise you based on your specific facts. Call the law offices of Terri J. Engles, P.C. at (405) 525-0777 or simply fill out our online evaluation to begin your journey to becoming informed about your charges and building the best defense available to you.
What to Expect When Charged
Depending on the county you are charged in, your experience with the justice system might vary in some respects. However, the following steps are generally accepted as necessary in every county. If you are arrested at the time you are accused of committing a crime, the State of Oklahoma has ten (10) days to file charges against you before they must release you from commitment in whatever county facility you are being held in. If the State of Oklahoma does not file charges in ten (10) days, you will be released, but they can still file charges against you.
Once the State files charges on you, you will be arraigned. The timing for arraignment varies if you are in custody at the time of filing or if you are out of custody at the time of filing. Either way, you will be given an arraignment date wherein you will be officially informed of the charges the State has filed against you, and you will be informed of your bail amount for those specific charges. If you’ve already posted bond, you might have to post more bond if the charges for which you were originally arrested for are different than the ones the State files.
At arraignment, you will be given a new court date and at that point, it is imperative that you have an attorney appear with you at each and every stage of your case from that point onward. Depending on the county you are charged in, your subsequent court appearances will be termed a preliminary hearing conference, a preliminary announcement docket, a disposition docket, etc. At this stage, your attorney will be conferencing with the assigned district attorney to discuss your case.
You may either decide to demand a preliminary hearing or waive your hearing. This is an area that you must discuss with your attorney and decide what’s best for you. No two cases are alike and there is no formula for knowing what is best for you. Without the legal advice of an attorney, however, you may make the wrong decision. Don’t let that happen to you.
Once you have either waived or been bound over for trial, you will have court appearances before the District Judge assigned to your case. At this point if a dismissal is not appropriate, you must decide to plead or demand a jury trial. Again, this is a very important decision and having an experienced and knowledgeable attorney can help you to make the right decision.
If you do demand a jury trial, this is the final step in the trial level defense of your case. Depending on your case, your attorney will take various steps to build the best defense for your case. The longer your attorney has been involved in your case, the better off you will be in successfully building your defense.
Finally, there is no specific timeline for how a criminal case will proceed. Some cases can be over in as little as a few months, and some cases can take as long as a year or two or even more. The best way to know what consequences you are facing and what sort of timeline your charge or charges carry is to consult an attorney who can advise you based on your specific facts. Call the law offices of Terri J. Engles, P.C. at (405) 525-0777 or simply fill out our online evaluation to begin your journey to becoming informed about your charges and building the best defense available to you.