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Frequently Asked Questions regarding Criminal Law
1.
What are the major categories of criminal offenses in Virginia?
Virginia
law classifies offenses into three basic categories: traffic
infractions, misdemeanors, and felonies.
Traffic
offenses involve motor vehicles and licensing (although some traffic
infractions constitute misdemeanors and even felonies, such as driving
under the influence or vehicular homicide). Generally, a traffic
infraction, such as speeding, failing to obey a stop sign, or driving
without your license in your possession is punished by imposition
of a fine.
Misdemeanors
carry a range of punishments, ranging from fines as high as $2,500.00
to as long as 12 months in jail.
Felony offenses
carry penitentiary sentences ranging from 1 year to life, and some
offenses carry fines much higher than those imposed in misdemeanor
offenses.
2.
What happens if I am charged with a crime?
Criminal
prosecutions can be started in several ways. A police officer may
write a traffic summons, or even a summons for a misdemeanor offense,
and serve the summons on the accused. The accused must then appear
in Court to answer the charge.
Another way
is that a private individual can obtain a warrant from a magistrate.
The warrant is then served by a police officer on the accused party,
who must then appear in Court to answer the charge.
Finally,
a grand jury may return an indictment, which is then served on the
accused party by a police officer. The accused party must then appear
in Court to answer the charge.
3.
What is bond or bail?
After the
accused party is served with a warrant or an indictment, it is often
necessary to post bond to be released from jail pending trial. A
bond (or bail) serves two main purposes. It guarantees that the
accused will appear when and where required to answer the pending
charges, and it guarantees that the accused party will not commit
any additional crimes while awaiting trial.
Bond can
be posted in several ways. The accused can pay a cash bond, which
is returned upon the completion of the case (although fines and
court costs may be deducted from the bond proceeds), or the accused
or someone on the accused party's behalf can post real or other
property in the amount of the bond. Generally speaking, a party
cannot post his or her own real property (land) for bond. If real
estate is used to secure a bond, the owner must present a certified
copy of the deed to the land, and a copy of the tax ticket value.
Often, all record owners of the real estate must appear before the
clerk or magistrate when posting real estate for an accused party's
bond.
If a person
on bond fails to appear for Court, or commits more crimes while
on bond, the Court can revoke and forfeit the bond for those actions,
in addition to imposing penalties for the crime itself.
4.
What are Miranda warnings and what if I don't receive them?
Most people
have heard the Miranda warnings on television shows. They are warnings
the police must give people in limited circumstances. To be entitled
to Miranda warnings, an accused:
1) must be under arrest; and 2) must be subject to questioning by
the police. Basically, the Miranda warnings advise of Constitutional
rights. You have the right to remain silent - this is the Fifth
Amendment privilege against self-incrimination. You have a right
to an attorney - this is the Sixth Amendment right to counsel.
5.
What is a preliminary hearing?
The preliminary
hearing is a court proceeding to determine whether there is sufficient
cause to charge a person who has been arrested on a felony charge.
The hearing is only required where the accused is arrested before
indictment. After the hearing, the felony charge is either certified
to the Circuit Court for reference to a grand jury, reduced to a
misdemeanor and tried by the District Court, or dismissed.
6.
What is an indictment?
An indictment
is a written formal charge of a crime against the accused that is
prepared by the commonwealth's attorney. It is returned a "true
bill" upon the oath or affirmation of a legally impaneled grand
jury.
7.
What is an arraignment?
This is the
court proceeding held in which the accused is identified as the
person charged, the charges are read in full, and an inquiry is
made into how the accused pleads to the charges.
8.
What are the consequences of a guilty plea?
A defendant
who pleads guilty is tried and sentenced by the judge, not a jury.
By pleading guilty to an indictment, the defendant is confessing
to the highest degree of the offense that the indictment charges.
In addition to other rights waived, a guilty plea operates to waive
the privilege against self-incrimination, the right to trial by
jury, and the right to confront one's accusers.
9.
What is a plea bargain?
This is a
settlement of the charges against the accused reached before trial
between the defendant's attorney and the commonwealth's attorney
(prosecutor) whereby the defendant agrees to plead guilty to the
original charge or to a lesser-included offense and the commonwealth's
attorney agrees to recommend to the Court that certain concessions
be made, such as probation, suspended sentence, or concurrent sentences.
The Virginia
State Police website contains helpful information regarding
Virginia criminal laws and enforcement as well as frequently asked
questions of the Virginia State Police.
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information contained in these web pages is not legal advice. The
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