We each have a constitutional right, called Double Jeopardy, not to be accused of the same charges twice. Specifically, you cannot be tried twice in the same courthouse of the same accusation. There are, however, exceptions. Depending on the circumstances, some charges tried in state court are also prosecuted in Federal court, even after the judge dismisses the charges or an accused is found not guilty in state court. In addition, an individual can face the same charges in state and family court.

A subpoena is essentially a court order to appear. Victims of domestic violence are often reluctant to testify. However, if you disobey a valid subpoena, you may subject yourself to sanctions by the Court. Witnesses and victims do not have the right to have a cased dismissed. The decision to prosecute rests solely with the Prosecutor. Office Incidents of domestic violence are deemed to affect the public, not just the parties involved. Courts view the public as having an interest in fairly resolving the case, and if you have been subpoenaed, your testimony could be crucial to this process. While the Court can hold you in contempt of court and punish you, it is likely to try alternatives first, such as rescheduling the court date or asking that a victim's advocate consult with you.

Eligibility for an expungement of arrest, investigation, or detention record will be based on state law. Often a number of conditions must be met before the request will be considered, including: • A minimum length of time has passed since arrest • There have been no intervening arrests • The proceedings were dismissed • Acquittal • Discharge without conviction and no charges were refiled • Release without formal charges being filed • Any juvenile records have been expunged

In determining the amount, if any, of bail that needs to be posted, a judge will consider: • The type and seriousness of the charges • Any prior failures to appear • Previous criminal record • Connections to the community • The probability that you抣l appear in court

A misdemeanor offense is charged for a relatively minor crime while more serious crimes are felonies. The difference between the two is often noted in the punishment given. Punishment for a felony carries more than a year imprisonment in a penitentiary, while those convicted of a misdemeanor often serve a year or less confinement, but not in a prison. Conviction of either a felony or misdemeanor may also carry fines or probation.

In most cases, for pleadings (a petition, answer, or reply) one original and two copies must be supplied; for other documents (for example, a motion), one original and four copies must be supplied. For cases being processed under the small tax case procedures, one original and two copies are needed. If part of a consolidated group, an additional copy is needed.

In most states, juries are instructed that merely being present at the scene of a crime, even with guilty knowledge that a crime is being committed, isn’t enough to convict a person of a crime. But there are principles of criminal liability that apply to people other than the actual perpetrator of a crime. For example, under federal law there is a crime called misprision of a felony, which applies to a person who has actual knowledge of the commission of a felony and doesn’t report it to the authorities. Also, a person can be held criminally liable as an accessory after the fact if she has knowledge that a crime was committed and assists the offender to hinder his apprehension, trial or punishment. You can also be guilty of aiding and abetting a crime if you help another person in committing the crime, with knowledge of the criminal nature of the act they are committing. Additionally, a person who agrees with another person to commit a crime, after which the other person commits a criminal act to further their agreement, may be guilty of conspiracy. But merely witnessing a crime, without any participation in it and without providing assistance, isn’t a crime.

Fleeing or eluding police occurs when a police officer gives you a visual or audible signal to stop, whether by hand, voice, emergency light or siren, and you don’t obey. In most states, it’s unlawful for a driver of a vehicle to disobey a police officer’s signal to stop if the officer is in uniform and his badge or similar sign of his authority is prominently displayed, or the officer is in a marked police vehicle, regardless of whether he’s in uniform. It’s also unlawful for a person who’s neither driving nor in a vehicle to disobey an officer’s order to stop, by fleeing on foot or by any other means.

Expungement of criminal court records is available under very specific circumstances. Expungement requires the order of the court. The Clerk's office cannot advise you if you meet the requirements. Nor can the Clerk's office obtain a court order of expungement for anyone. Consult a lawyer.

It is Frightening that the answer is YES. The police are allowed to tell you an outright lie in attempts to get you to incriminate yourself. One of the most common lies is to say they have witnesses or other evidence when they do not or to tell someone that their accomplices have already confessed so they should as well.

You may file for an expungement of a criminal case one year after your conviction date. However, if your case was dismissed you do not need to wait a year from dismissal date to file for an expungement. You must also have no other violations on your record. Traffic records cannot be expunged.

Traffic violations can be felonies, misdemeanors, or infractions. Felonies and misdemeanors are crimes, but infractions are usually not thought to be part of the criminal justice system. Driving over the speed limit is usually classified as an infraction in those systems that use the infraction category and as a minor misdemeanor in those systems that do not. If driving over the speed limit is classified as a misdemeanor, it is technically a crime, but often such crimes are excluded from consideration in a person's criminal record. Whether speeding is an infraction or a crime, it is usually punished by a fine. A common scheme is for the fine to increase in proportion to the amount over the speed limit for which the ticket is written. Most jurisdictions tell the speeder the amount of the fine right on the ticket and often give instructions for pleading guilty and paying the fine by mail. The offender may have to pay a special fee to get a trial on the ticket and may not be entitled to a jury trial.

Rape is often used as a generic term for unwanted sexual acts. However, its common-law definition required the sexual act to be intercourse, the rapist to be a man, and the victim to be a woman, other than his wife. Furthermore, the act had to be done by force or the threat of force. Common-law rules often required the rape to be corroborated by independent witnesses to negate the offender's defense of consent. Many modern-day codes no longer use the term "rape" but instead use sexual abuse or sexual assault to define the prohibited acts. Traditional rape is covered by these statutes and may be designated sexual abuse in the first degree. However, most sexual assault statutes cover more kinds of sexual acts and apply to homosexuals as well as heterosexuals. Husbands can generally be charged with sexual assault of their wives, although they may receive a lighter sentence than non-marital sexual assault. Lesser offenses, such as unwanted touching or lascivious acts may be included in the definition of sexual assault.

No, the punishment for drug crimes depends not only on the criminal conduct of the offender but also on the classification of the drug. Federal sentencing guidelines begin with forty-three base offense levels and add or subtract a few levels depending on certain specified criteria. The higher the offense level, the harsher the sentence. The base offense level under the federal guidelines differs for different drugs and for different amounts of the same drug.

The early definition of white-collar crime focused on the status of the offenders when it identified them as professionals or businessmen. However, the current definition of white-collar crime focuses on the actions committed and not on the vocation of the offender. White-collar crime is using illegal acts involving deceit to obtain property or services or to gain a business or professional advantage. A printer was convicted of securities fraud when he used information he obtained in the course of printing corporate documents to gain an advantage in the stock market. The RICO Act is generally thought of as a white-collar crime prevention statute. It punishes anyone who engages in a pattern of racketeering to generate income to buy a business or to conduct a business. The pattern of racketeering refers to at least two criminal acts listed in the statute that have a relationship to each other and occur within ten years of each other. Originally passed to control organized crime, RICO has been applied to drug dealers, and other non-organized crime defendants.