Law can be complicated, since there are thousands of terms in it. Moreover, law doesn’t remain the same in every country. Anyhow, if you broke the rules because you didn’t know them, it’s not an excuse at all.
While you cannot learn each and every thing in just a single post, we have some basic information about the legal proceedings that will be quite useful for you in future. If you’ve been facing criminal charges, make sure you hire the right criminal defense lawyer Toronto. And if you’re standing at the edge of the wreck, contact Hershberg Law and give yourself a new hope.
Steps
- Information: After the crime was committed, the person alleging the offence swears under oath all the facts in support of the charge. A Justice of the Peace at that point shall issue an Information. This is a document which contains the specific allegations. Under a private prosecution a hearing may be held and the Attorney General may intervene.
- Bail: Most of the time, the accused are released at the time of arrest, given that they promise to appear. Where the police decide to hold the accused, the police must produce the accused before a Justice of the Peace within 24 hours. At that point a bail hearing will be held. If the person is accused of murder, narcotics trafficking, terrorism, his bail may be rejected and he may be held until trial and sentencing.
- Preliminary inquiry: If the person is accused of indictable offense, it is the responsibility of the crown to provide sufficient evidences before the judge at the provincial court. This process may either be requested by the defence lawyer Toronto or the prosecution. The presiding judge must determine whether there is sufficient evidence for a jury to convict the accused.
If the judge determines there is sufficient evidence for a jury acting reasonably and judicially to convict the accused, the judge must commit the accused to stand trial. If not, the judge must discharge the accused and the proceedings end.
- Trial:Where the accused is charged with an offence and has elected to be tried in provincial court, the judge may decide that the matter ought to be dealt with in the superior court and treat the trial as a preliminary inquiry and demand the accused to stand trial in the superior court.
At this stage the trial court has all the authority to determine matters such as bail, preliminary motions, trial matters and the verdict. If the trial is by judge and jury, the jury has the ultimate authority to render a verdict but the trial judge has the authority over bail, pretrial motions and jury instructions.
- Sentencing: If the accused is found guilty the trial judge must determine a fit sentence.Where the trial is by judge alone, the judge will determine all facts which were proven and allow the parties to adduce additional evidence concerning disputed facts which may form the basis for finding aggraviting or mitigating circumstance.
- Appeal:The Crown may appeal against a verdict of acquittal on a question of law alone. The accused may appeal on a question of law, fact or mixed law and fact. Either party may appeal a sentence unless the sentence is one fixed by law.