What are the types of criminal offenses and what is the procedure for handling these in the state of California?

There are three types of criminal offenses in California:

• Infractions
• Misdemeanors
• Felonies

To arrest someone for a crime, the police need Probable Cause. If the person is out on the street, they can arrest him/her on sight. If the person is inside a residence, they can obtain an arrest warrant from a magistrate. A Search Warrant may be needed to collect evidence of the crime or the identity of the perpetrators.

Forensic evidence will be submitted to the Crime Lab for evaluation and analysis. Accountability for the custody and handling of evidence must be maintained. (a.k.a.: chain of custody)

Reports detailing the offense and the state of the evidence are submitted to the District Attorney for the filing of formal criminal charges. Consideration should be given to the purposes for writing reports. Discrepancies within and between police reports must be addressed.

If the charged crime is a Felony, the prosecutor must first decide whether to proceed by way of Grand Jury Indictment or Preliminary Hearing (PH). The investigator(s) or criminalist(s) who have been assigned to analyze the forensic evidence may be called to testify at either the Grand Jury hearing or the Municipal Court Preliminary Hearing.

At a Grand Jury hearing, the only attorney who will be present is the prosecutor. The Grand Jury meets in a special room, set aside for their exclusive use. A transcript of the proceedings is made by a court reporter. Proceedings are secret until the indictments are unsealed.

At a preliminary hearing, the prosecutor, the defendant, and a defense attorney are present. There is no jury. The defense attorney may cross-examine the witnesses. The PH is held in a Municipal Courtroom, with the Municipal Court Judge presiding over the proceedings. A transcript of the court proceedings is made by a court reporter. In California, under Proposition 115, single-level hearsay may be introduced at the Preliminary Hearing. Investigators testifying for criminalists or other experts should obtain the following information from the expert prior to 115 testimony:

• The expert's training
• Prior experience
• That the expert followed established procedures for handling and analyzing the evidence
• The results of the analysis
  

If the Grand Jury returns an indictment, or the Judge holds the defendant to answer after the PH, the defendant will then appear in Superior Court. After arraignment and pre-trial, the case may end in a guilty plea. If not, the case will be set for jury trial. The expert may have to testify, and will be subject to cross-examination by the defense attorney before the jury.

Determinate Sentencing Law: One third the midterm for subordinate counts. Inapplicable to enhancements.

Previously, most cases (90+%) went to preliminary hearing and then were resolved before jury trial.

The ones that went to trial did so because:

• The case was poorly investigated and prepared.
• The prosecutor was perceived as an ineffective adversary.
• The defendant, because of enhancements, priors, or the judge's pretrial offer, had nothing to lose.

The first two reasons make for an uncomfortable experience! Today, the number of defendants going to trial for the third reason has risen dramatically. As a result of the Three Strikes law and the higher stakes (e.g. 25 to life), proper evidence gathering, forensic analysis, trial preparation and testimony skills have become all the more important.

Three Strikes Law: Any new felony with two-or-more strikes (note: a strike is a serious (PC 1192.1c) or violent (667.5c) felony). Sentence is 25 years to Life (with only 20% Good Time Credits)