New York City Criminal Court
Encyclopedia
The New York City Criminal Court is the general term describing the entry-level court for criminal
cases in the five borough
s of New York City
.
The Criminal Court hears misdemeanor
s, and some traffic infractions. Criminal Court also arraigns persons accused of felonies
. Felony charges are ultimately heard in New York State Supreme Court.
Most people who are arrested and prosecuted in New York City will appear before a Criminal Court judge for arraignment
. They may share a holding cell behind the courtroom. In New York City, the time from arrest to arraignment in Criminal Court is about 24 hours.
Given the volume of arrests in New York City, Criminal Court arraignments are held day and night, seven days a week, 365 days a year, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 AM.
At the arraignment, the primary issue is whether or not the Court will decide that bail
is required. If the Court does not set bail
, the accused is released on his own recognizance
. If the judge decides that the accused cannot be trusted to return to court without some encouragement, the judge may set bail.
The decisions to set bail and the amount of bail to set are discretionary, and depend on three factors: 1) prior criminal history, 2) the seriousness of the felony, and 3) community ties of the accused.
Every person who is arrested is entitled to be read the accusations against him or her formally. However, this is a rare event - tradition in New York City is that a copy of the charges be provided at arraignment to the defense lawyer, who is expected to waive the formal public reading. Generally, the defense enters a plea of not guilty.
Next, the prosecutor provides defense counsel with certain "notices" that are required by law. Although these notices vary depending on the type of case and facts presented, they generally relate to notifying the defense about certain types of evidence in the Government's possession. For example, one type of notice frequently presented at arraignment notifies the defense that the Government has a statement from the defendant. At the arraignment, the notices are rattled off in quick succession and identified by Criminal Procedure Law references. Once all the notices are handed to the defense, the judge usually asks to hear the Government's position on bail. Usually, the prosecutor will request bail and briefly outline the basis for the request. The defense lawyer is then afforded an opportunity to speak, and will usually seek the defendant's release from custody. Finally, after hearing from both sides, the judge decides on bail.
After arraignment, the misdemeanors, violations and other various low-level infractions are tracked to "All Purpose Parts", or courtrooms where the cases will be negotiated, resolved, or readied for trial. Once certain procedural requirements are met, the defense will frequently request the opportunity to file pretrial motions, through which they will request certain pretrial hearings, if required. Typically, there are three classic types of pretrial hearings, all of which relate to testing the admissibility
of different kinds of evidence which the Government intends to use at trial. Specifically, the three classic pretrial hearings challenge the admissibility of: 1) identification evidence (like a lineup); 2) confession
s; and 3) physical evidence, obtained either from the accused, or from a place where the accused has an expectation of privacy
. Once pretrial hearings are completed, the case is considered ready for trial and will usually be transferred to a courtroom that specializes in handling trials.
New York City Criminal Court is also responsible for handling felony accusations beyond the arraignment. In New York, the Government is required to seek and obtain an indictment
in order to prosecute a felony case to its conclusion at a trial. Issued by a Grand Jury
, an indictment is permission for the Government to prosecute an individual for a felony (or sometimes a misdemeanor).
While the burden on the Government required to obtain the Grand Jury indictment is extremely low, the Grand Jury process is time-consuming. It has fallen to New York City Criminal Court, then, to be responsible for unindicted felony cases. Such cases are adjourned from arraignments to various Criminal Court courtrooms to monitor their progress toward indictment.
Once an indictment is issued, the case is transferred to New York State Supreme Court, where it will be tried.
Judges of the Criminal Court are appointed by the Mayor of New York to a 10-year term. Several Criminal Court Judges are designated as Acting Justices of the New York State Supreme Court. In addition, Judges of the New York City Civil Court
are designated to sit in the Criminal Court.
Traffic violations in New York City are handled in the Traffic Violations Bureau
, which operates under the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles
. The Bureau is an administrative law
agency and not an Article III
-type court.
Criminal law
Criminal law, is the body of law that relates to crime. It might be defined as the body of rules that defines conduct that is not allowed because it is held to threaten, harm or endanger the safety and welfare of people, and that sets out the punishment to be imposed on people who do not obey...
cases in the five borough
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
s of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
The Criminal Court hears misdemeanor
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
s, and some traffic infractions. Criminal Court also arraigns persons accused of felonies
Felony
A felony is a serious crime in the common law countries. The term originates from English common law where felonies were originally crimes which involved the confiscation of a convicted person's land and goods; other crimes were called misdemeanors...
. Felony charges are ultimately heard in New York State Supreme Court.
Most people who are arrested and prosecuted in New York City will appear before a Criminal Court judge for arraignment
Arraignment
Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal complaint in the presence of the defendant to inform the defendant of the charges against him or her. In response to arraignment, the accused is expected to enter a plea...
. They may share a holding cell behind the courtroom. In New York City, the time from arrest to arraignment in Criminal Court is about 24 hours.
Given the volume of arrests in New York City, Criminal Court arraignments are held day and night, seven days a week, 365 days a year, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 AM.
At the arraignment, the primary issue is whether or not the Court will decide that bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
is required. If the Court does not set bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
, the accused is released on his own recognizance
Recognizance
In some common law nations, a recognizance is a conditional obligation undertaken by a person before a court. It is an obligation of record, entered into before a court or magistrate duly authorized, whereby the party bound acknowledges that he owes a personal debt to the state...
. If the judge decides that the accused cannot be trusted to return to court without some encouragement, the judge may set bail.
The decisions to set bail and the amount of bail to set are discretionary, and depend on three factors: 1) prior criminal history, 2) the seriousness of the felony, and 3) community ties of the accused.
Every person who is arrested is entitled to be read the accusations against him or her formally. However, this is a rare event - tradition in New York City is that a copy of the charges be provided at arraignment to the defense lawyer, who is expected to waive the formal public reading. Generally, the defense enters a plea of not guilty.
Next, the prosecutor provides defense counsel with certain "notices" that are required by law. Although these notices vary depending on the type of case and facts presented, they generally relate to notifying the defense about certain types of evidence in the Government's possession. For example, one type of notice frequently presented at arraignment notifies the defense that the Government has a statement from the defendant. At the arraignment, the notices are rattled off in quick succession and identified by Criminal Procedure Law references. Once all the notices are handed to the defense, the judge usually asks to hear the Government's position on bail. Usually, the prosecutor will request bail and briefly outline the basis for the request. The defense lawyer is then afforded an opportunity to speak, and will usually seek the defendant's release from custody. Finally, after hearing from both sides, the judge decides on bail.
After arraignment, the misdemeanors, violations and other various low-level infractions are tracked to "All Purpose Parts", or courtrooms where the cases will be negotiated, resolved, or readied for trial. Once certain procedural requirements are met, the defense will frequently request the opportunity to file pretrial motions, through which they will request certain pretrial hearings, if required. Typically, there are three classic types of pretrial hearings, all of which relate to testing the admissibility
Admissible evidence
Admissible evidence, in a court of law, is any testimonial, documentary, or tangible evidence that may be introduced to a factfinder—usually a judge or jury—in order to establish or to bolster a point put forth by a party to the proceeding...
of different kinds of evidence which the Government intends to use at trial. Specifically, the three classic pretrial hearings challenge the admissibility of: 1) identification evidence (like a lineup); 2) confession
Confession
This article is for the religious practice of confessing one's sins.Confession is the acknowledgment of sin or wrongs...
s; and 3) physical evidence, obtained either from the accused, or from a place where the accused has an expectation of privacy
Expectation of privacy
In United States constitutional law the expectation of privacy is a legal test which is crucial in defining the scope of the applicability of the privacy protections of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution...
. Once pretrial hearings are completed, the case is considered ready for trial and will usually be transferred to a courtroom that specializes in handling trials.
New York City Criminal Court is also responsible for handling felony accusations beyond the arraignment. In New York, the Government is required to seek and obtain an indictment
Indictment
An indictment , in the common-law legal system, is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that maintain the concept of felonies, the serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that lack the concept of felonies often use that of an indictable offence—an...
in order to prosecute a felony case to its conclusion at a trial. Issued by a Grand Jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
, an indictment is permission for the Government to prosecute an individual for a felony (or sometimes a misdemeanor).
While the burden on the Government required to obtain the Grand Jury indictment is extremely low, the Grand Jury process is time-consuming. It has fallen to New York City Criminal Court, then, to be responsible for unindicted felony cases. Such cases are adjourned from arraignments to various Criminal Court courtrooms to monitor their progress toward indictment.
Once an indictment is issued, the case is transferred to New York State Supreme Court, where it will be tried.
Judges of the Criminal Court are appointed by the Mayor of New York to a 10-year term. Several Criminal Court Judges are designated as Acting Justices of the New York State Supreme Court. In addition, Judges of the New York City Civil Court
New York City Civil Court
The New York City Civil Court is a court hearing civil cases within New York City. By volume, it is the largest civil jurisdiction court in the United States, and handles about 25% of the total filings of the entire New York state court system.-Jurisdiction:...
are designated to sit in the Criminal Court.
Traffic violations in New York City are handled in the Traffic Violations Bureau
Traffic Violations Bureau
Traffic Violations Bureau, often abbreviated as TVB, is an arm of the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. The bureau is entrusted with adjudicating non-criminal traffic violations in New York City, the cities of Buffalo, Rochester, and in a significant portion of Suffolk County...
, which operates under the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles
Department of Motor Vehicles
In the United States of America, a Department of Motor Vehicles is a state-level government agency that administers vehicle registration and driver licensing. Similar departments exist in Canada...
. The Bureau is an administrative law
United States administrative law
United States administrative law encompasses a number of statutes and cases which define the extent of the powers and responsibilities held by administrative agencies of the United States Government. The executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the U.S. federal government cannot always...
agency and not an Article III
Article I and Article III tribunals
In the United States, the American legal system includes both state courts and United States federal courts. The federal tribunals may be an Article III tribunal or another adjudicative body classified as an Article I or an Article IV tribunal...
-type court.