Basic Steps in Criminal Cases
The State’s Attorney’s Office initiates all criminal cases either through Grand Jury Indictment or filing of an Information. A Summons is then issued to the defendant as notification that he/she has been charged and needs to appear in court on a specified date. A warrant may also be issued to hold the defendant in custody.
At the defendant’s first appearance in court, called a Scheduling Hearing, the judge informs the defendant of the right to have counsel and the importance of the assistance of counsel as well as the nature of the charges against him/her.
The judge will also set dates for the remainder of the case based on the case track. While court proceedings are pre-scheduled according to the Criminal Differentiated Case Management (DCM) Plan (PDF) when the case is filed, the schedule can be modified by motion or agreement of parties. The following are some of the critical steps:
- Discovery (disclosure of information to be submitted to the Court at trial) and filing of pretrial motions (requests to the Court to suppress the evidence and/or statements taken from the defendant at the time of the arrest, to transfer the case to Juvenile Court, etc.) must be completed before the Motions Hearing.
- Based on the information provided during Discovery, the defendant may decide to plead guilty, and the parties may reach an agreement on the number and type of charges to be brought against the defendant and/or the sentence(s) to be imposed on him or her. These matters are discussed at the Disposition Hearing, where the presiding judge takes the plea and sentence based on the agreement reached by the State’s Attorney and defense counsel. However, when the defendant does not plead guilty, the case goes to Trial.
- At the trial, the presiding judge or a jury determines whether the defendant is guilty of the alleged crime beyond reasonable doubt based on the evidence presented before the Court. If a defendant has been found guilty, he/she may file for an appeal to the Court of Special Appeals. If qualified, a defendant may also apply for an expungement of his/her records.
Fingerprinting for Background Checks
The Criminal Department does NOT offer fingerprinting services for background checks.
If you need a background check for employment purposes, adoptions, or another reason, contact the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, phone: 410-764-4501, 888-795-0011 (toll-free), Monday-Friday, 8:00 am-5:00 pm.
Differentiated Case Management (DCM) Guidelines for Criminal Cases
DCM is characterized by the early differentiation of cases entering the justice system in terms of the nature and extent of judicial/justice system resources they will require. Each case is assigned to the appropriate case track that allows for the performance of pretrial tasks and allocates the appropriate level of judicial and other system resources, minimizing processing delays. Established mechanisms avoid multiple court appearances and assure the timely provision of resources for the expeditious processing and resolution of cases on each track.
There are 4 tracks in criminal cases. Tracks are numeric categories assigned to each case that drive how dates are scheduled and time standards are met.
For more information, visit the What are DCM Tracks? page.
Download the Criminal DCM Plan, revised July 2010 (PDF)