The Alexander City Outlook

Judge Young gives overview of the journey for the accused

Editor’s note: This is the first article in a series explaining the basics of the court system in Alabama.

The Outlook frequently runs the names and charges of those who are arrested in our area. But have you ever wondered what happens next to that person after he or she has been charged with a crime?

Circuit Judge Tom Young, of the fifth judicial circuit, explained that it all depends on where the crime was committed, as well as the severity of the crime.

“If someone is arrested within city limits, the city’s municipal court will hear the case,” Young explained.
Both Alexander City and Dadeville have municipal courts, which hear cases involving misdemeanor charges.  The accused will at this point either plea out or proceed to trial.

If the crime happens outside city limits, however, Young said the case will be tried by Tallapoosa County’s district court.

District courts, Young said, handle similar misdemeanor cases to that of municipal courts, with the added responsibility of being the beginning point of felony prosecution for county cases.

For misdemeanor cases in both the district and municipal courts, the story ends here with a verdict of guilty or not guilty, unless this person decides to appeal to the circuit court, Young said.

But for those facing felony charges, there are still a few more steps before the case can be heard by Young at the circuit court, if it makes it that far.

Young said that felony cases must first be heard by a grand jury, which meets twice a year in Dadeville and twice a year in Alexander City.

Unlike a petit jury, which consists of 12 people that are charged with deciding guilt or innocence, the grand jury is not there to make a declaration of guilt. Instead, the 18-25 people that make up the grand jury will decide whether the case should continue to circuit court, Young said,

“The grand jury is the beginning point for a serious criminal offense,” Young said, “They hear a limited amount of evidence to see if there is enough there to issue an indictment. The indictment is simply a piece of paper that informs someone of what they have been charged with and begins the prosecution process in circuit court.”

The grand jury will also decide what the person will be indicted for, Young said. During this process, persons arrested for such crimes as capital murder can end up being indicted for a lesser offense or vice versa.

From here, the person has been indicted for a crime, but has yet to be tried. Those who are indicted will be arraigned, where they will say how the plea in the case, Young said.

“If they plea not guilty, then the process will start moving forward towards setting a trial date,” Young said.  Once you are arraigned, this is when the defense lawyers are hired.”

The defense will now be given the opportunity to see all the evidence that prosecution has on the defendant, in order to make a decision about whether to shoot for a plea bargain or continue on to trial, Young said.

“In between the arraignment and trial date, there is a plea date,” Young said.

The amount of pleas is massive, Young said. Persons who plead out will be sentenced that day, with a probation hearing set for a later date.

If they don’t plead guilty, Young said the trial date is then set for the next trial term. There are two criminal trial terms for the circuit court per year in both Alexander City and Dadeville, with the person being tried in the city where the crime was committed.

For those found guilty at the circuit court level, their case can be appealed to a higher court.

“The circuit court is a court of general jurisdiction and will be the last time you have a court setting where facts are presented and fact finders attempt to (determine guilt or innocence),” Young said. “From here, appellate courts will not hear the facts of the case again but will instead review the actions taken by the lower court.”