DennieHardin.com FAQs (frequently-asked questions)

When someone is arrested for a criminal charge they are required by law to have a reasonable bond set so they do not have to stay in jail until their case is resolved. The bond system is in place to insure that a defendant returns to court when they are required to. In theory, if a defendant posts a $500.00 bond and does not return to court then he will lose his money. If there are no violations of the bond conditions the bond money is released when the case has come to a conclusion.

The two general types of bond are secured and unsecured. A secured bond means that you actually post money or property to secure your release. An unsecured bond or surety bond means you sign a document that says you will pay a certain amount of money if the defendant breaks his bond conditions.

The arraignment is typically the first appearance in court for a criminal charge. It will consist of the reading or stating to the defendant the substance of the charge and asking the defendant to plead either guilty or not guilty.

A Preliminary Hearing is a hearing conducted in District Court where the Judge determines if Probable Cause exists that a felony offense was committed. If the Judge finds that it probably happened, and they normally do, then he will bind the case over to the Grand Jury for Indictment.

When a felony charge is presented to the Grand Jury by the Commonwealth Attorney the Grand Jury will listen to evidence from the prosecutor about the alleged crime. The Grand Jury can then Indict the defendant formalizing his charges into felony charges in the Circuit Court of that county. The defendant will then be arraigned at the Circuit Court level.

In general, a misdemeanor is any criminal charge that carries a penalty of less than 12 months incarceration.

In general, a felony is any criminal charge that carries a penalty of more than 12 months incarceration.

In District Court (misdemeanor charges) you can have either a bench trial or a jury trial. A bench trial is conducted in front of the Judge of that court and he or she makes the decision of guilt or innocence alone. A jury trial is decided by a panel of 6 jurors in District Court and 12 jurors in Circuit Court (felony charges).

The first phase of a Jury trial is called voir dire. Voir dire is the process where a jury is selected from the jury pool. During voir dire the Prosecutor and the Defense lawyer are allowed to ask questions of the jury pool to determine who can fairly and impartially listen to the evidence without being prejudiced.
Once the jury is selected, the prosecutor is entitled to make an opening statement to the jury to outline his case. The defense attorney then has an opportunity to make their opening statement. Following the opening statements the prosecution presents their evidence by calling witnesses to testify. The defense attorney has the opportunity to cross-examine all of the witnesses called by the prosecution. When the prosecution is finished presenting their case the defendant will then call of their witnesses to testify and the prosecution is also allowed to cross examine these witnesses.

When the defendant concludes their case closing arguments begin. The defendant is given the right to do closing arguments first, followed by the prosecution. The jury is then asked to consider all of the evidence they heard during the trial and return a decision. If the defendant is found not guilty then the trial is over. If the jury returns a guilty verdict then the sentencing phase begins. During sentencing the jury will hear arguments from the defendant and the prosecutor. The jury then deliberates again and determines the penalty for the defendant.