As a victim of or witness to a crime, you probably will have many questions about what to expect when you are involved in the criminal justice process. The following is a brief description of the process followed to prosecute a person accused of committing a felony offense. If the offense is a misdemeanor or if the person accused is a juvenile, the steps involved in prosecuting the offender are different. Please refer to the Juvenile Court Process page located here for more information. If a juvenile is transferred from the juvenile justice system to stand trial as an adult, the case will proceed through these same steps.
- The Crime
- Initial Investigation
- Follow-up Investigation
- Formal Charging Procedure
- Arrest
- Preliminary Hearing/Grand Jury
- Preliminary Hearing and Pleas at Justice Court
- Arraignment
- Pretrial Actions/Hearings
- Competency of the Defendant
- Plea Agreements
- Trial
- Sentencing
- Probation, Prison, Parole or Community Supervision
- Appeals
For more information about these steps, please refer to the PDF entitled, "Felony Procedures." |