Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court Attorney
WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT TO HAPPEN IN MY ALBUQUERQUE METROPOLITAN COURT CASE IN ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO?
Are you looking for more information about your case with Albuquerque, New Mexico Metropolitan Court?
For many of my clients this is their first experience with the legal system. This is the first time that they have been to Metro Court. The process to them is as foreign as one of Einstein’s complex equations. The odds are good that if you stumbled onto this blog you might be in the same situation. I’m sure that you are a good person that was involved in a bad situation, and now you find yourself in the eye of the storm known as Metro Court.
The whole process begins when you are arrested and either ticketed, or booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center – MDC. Assuming that you were arrested and booked into MDC, in most instances you will be released on your own recognizance – which essentially means that you acknowledge that you are legally bound to appear before the Court on a certain day. If you are a repeat offender, or charged with a serious or violent offense, then you pose a greater risk of harm to the community, or a greater risk of flight. In these circumstances the court may impose a cash or surety bond to ensure that you appear before the Court. In either situation, once you are released from MDC your first appearance before the Court is the Arraignment Hearing.
WHAT TO EXPECT AT A MISDEMEANOR ARRAIGNMENT IN NEW MEXICO
Arraignment Hearings in Metro Court are relatively painless. The purpose of the Arraignment Hearing is to provide you with a formal reading of the Criminal Complaint, to inform you of the criminal charges that you face, and allow you to enter a plea of either guilty or not guilty based on the information contained in the Complaint. Once your name is called the process takes about a minute. At this point your attorney will waive a formal reading of the complaint, and enter a plea of not guilty – assuming that the Arraignment is not waived altogether by your attorney.
The date of your Arraignment is particularly important because on this date the clock begins to tick for actions that are required by your attorney, and for any burdens that the State is required to meet.
WHAT IS THE DEADLINE TO REQUEST A NEW JUDGE IN METRO COURT?
On your end there are several actions that your attorney must take from the date of Arraignment. First, you can request a new judge, but you must do so ten days from the date of Arraignment. Second, you can request a jury trial if your possible sentence is greater than 90 days, but you must do so within ten days from the date of Arraignment. If the possible sentence is greater than 6 months, you are entitled to a jury trial unless you waive that right. On the other hand, if the possible sentence is 90 days or less, then you are not entitled to a jury trial, and your case will be heard by the presiding judge, if you elect to proceed to trial – a fact that makes requesting a new judge exceedingly important for potential “bench trials.”
MISDEMEANOR DISCOVERY PROCESS IN ALBUQUERQUE
The State has several burdens that they must meet from the date of Arraignment. First, the State must produce discovery – any evidence that the State has in its possession that demonstrates your guilt or innocence – within 30 days. Secondly, because of your right to a speedy trial, in the typical case, the State must bring your case to trial within 182 days from the date of Arraignment or your case will be dismissed with prejudice – read my previous blog entry on your Right to a Speedy Trial for an in-depth analysis on this requirement.
METRO COURT 100 DAY RULE
The period of time from the date of Arraignment until the day of your trial is a period of time where your attorney will do all of the legwork required for trial. This includes requesting, receiving, and reviewing all of the State’s evidence, as well as requesting and conducting pre-trial interviews with all of the potential witnesses. This interview process allows your attorney to record a statement from each witness that the State may use against you at trial. This includes the alleged victim, police officers that were involved with the case, and any other civilian witnesses that may appear at trial on the State’s behalf. These interviews must be scheduled within 100 days from the date of Arraignment, unless your attorney asks to extend this date. The information received from discovery and pre-trial interviews provides your attorney with the ammunition to file pre-trial motions based on all of the evidence received.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES IN ALBUQUERQUE, NM METRO COURT
If the charges against you are either Domestic Violence or DWI then there will also be one or two pre-trial conferences before the date of trial. These conferences are essentially status checks where the Judge will check with your attorney and the State to review the status of the case – such as if the State has produced all of the requested evidence, if the pre-trial interviews have been requested and completed, etc. Generally your attorney can waive your appearance at these conferences, the Judge will check the status of the case, your attorney can make arguments before the Court based on all of the evidence, and the Judge will schedule a trial date.
WHAT TO EXPECT AT TRIAL IN ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO METROPOLITAN COURT
Next stop is game day – your trial. As previously mentioned, in the typical case, your trial must be scheduled within 182 days from the date of Arraignment, or your case will be dismissed with prejudice – which means that the State cannot re-file the charges against you. On this date the arresting officers and any other necessary witnesses must appear. If either the arresting officer or any of the necessary witnesses fail to appear then your case will be dismissed without prejudice – which means that the State can re-file the charges against you, up to 182 days from the date of Arraignment. On the other hand, if the arresting officers and necessary witnesses appear on this date, and there are no other issues with your case, then you can choose to either go to trial – where the State is required to prove that you are guilty beyond a reasonable doubt – or, your attorney can negotiate with the State for a favorable plea deal.
Matthew Legan Sanchez is a Bernalillo criminal defense attorney that has practiced criminal law in Albuquerque, New Mexico Metropolitan court for over a decade.
Bernalillo Metropolitan Court Attorney
