Essex County Indictable Crimes (Felony) Defense Lawyer.

If you are charged with a felony (called an indictable offense in NJ), the case has to be prosecuted in the Superior Court. In Essex County, that’s the Newark courthouse, located at 50 West Market Street. You have a right to a lawyer, and if you cannot afford one, the court will decide if you qualify for assigned counsel using the 5A form. The judge weighs your income and assets against your expenses and debts. A defense lawyer’s job is to know the evidence, file motions, negotiate with the prosecutor, and seek diversion when possible.

Felonies in NJ are serious and have dire consequences beyond a criminal record. The highest (1st degree) usually carries a 10 to 20 year prison term. Murder and some other crimes carry longer prison terms. A 3rd degree crime typically carries a prison term of 3 to 5 years. A first degree crime has a fine up to $200,000, plus any restitution. For most crimes, there is a time limit of five years within which a prosecution must begin. Murder, manslaughter and sexual assault have no time limit.

The prosecutor can ask to keep you in jail before trial, and a detention hearing is usually held no later than the first court appearance. Generally, you cannot be held more than 90 days before an indictment, excluding delays. The next step is presenting the case to a grand jury. There can be up to 23 members of the jury, but it only needs 12 to agree that the charges are warranted for an indictment. Your lawyer can later challenge an indictment by motion.

Pretrial Motion

Evidence can be thrown out before trial by filing a pretrial motion. The motion is decided by a judge and not a jury. If the facts of a warrantless search are disputed, witnesses have to testify in open court so that the judge can decide who is credible. A Miranda challenge is a separate motion from a warrantless search. It may apply when police question you in custody or when a statement wasn’t given voluntarily, when the right to a lawyer or silence was not respected, or where Miranda was given but waived incorrectly. If a statement is thrown out, the jury may never hear it.

There are many other motions that can be made before trial in a felony case, each one for its own purpose. There are even motions that can affect the indictment itself and how charges are presented or combined in front of the jury. Expert evidence can be attacked. Even motions to address identification procedures may need to be made before a jury hears any of the case.

Discuss Potential Pleas and Sentence Recommendations

Negotiating is not surrender. Instead, it’s the court rules that allow the prosecutor and defense to discuss potential pleas and sentence recommendations. A number of factors will be considered in negotiating with the prosecutor’s office, including the strength of their evidence, exposure, and the chance of winning at trial. Your lawyer may request a dismissal or downgrade of some of the charges. The result can include a different sentencing recommendation. One of the keys to a good negotiation is your lawyer’s knowledge of the evidence, legal issues, sentencing exposure, and risk of trial.

Diversion Programs

Pretrial Intervention, or PTI, is one of the main Superior Court diversion programs in NJ. To apply, a lawyer files a PTI application with the Court. The charges get suspended while you’re in the program. You’re supervised for a maximum of 3 years. Completing PTI usually means that the charges are dismissed and no conviction follows. A PTI application is usually due 28 days after an indictment. The prosecutor is required to give consent. Their decision carries wide discretion, and a denial can be reviewed by the court but is hard to overturn. If you have a prior conviction, that can make PTI harder to get.

Your lawyer may also check to see if other diversion programs apply. Other programs, like recovery court, have their own terms, conditions, and possible requirements. There’s no substitute for understanding the requirements of a program and making sure you qualify based on your charges, record, and situation.

Motions, negotiation, and diversion can be done together. Sometimes, they help each other out. For example, you can file a motion with the court and try to negotiate with the prosecutor at the same time. The results of one may help the other. If there’s a legal issue with the case, it may be more likely that the prosecutor will want to discuss resolving it in a way that suits your interests. You may also be trying to get into a diversion program while you’re fighting the case. A diversion application can be on file when your lawyer is asking to have evidence thrown out. Of course, every case is different and these paths aren’t available to everyone.

Whichever path you take, your defense attorney should know the area of law. The New Jersey Supreme Court certifies some attorneys as Criminal Trial Attorneys, which means that they’ve satisfied educational, experience, and skill requirements.

Even if your case ends in a conviction, it doesn’t always have to be permanent. In most cases, one indictable conviction can be expunged after 5 years from the conviction, completion of fines, probation, or prison time, whichever is last.