A Bronx Criminal Lawyer’s Guide – The Path From Arrest to Arraignment in Bronx County, New York There is a common belief among attorneys, as well as the general public, that all criminal matters beginning with arrest somewhere in the United States follow a precise, consistent, and straightforward path leading to formal judicial proceedings. This, unfortunately, is far from reality. There are many factors that have an important impact on the process after arrest. These factors include, but are not limited to, the location where the person was arrested, the availability of a judicial center operating nearby, access to legal counsel, the availability of prosecutors, court clerks, stenographers, computer systems, and many other essential items. for any legal process. People arrested in remote areas, at night, can expect to spend several hours in a police station with little or no access to lawyers. Most are surprised to learn that many of the judges who have been called to the trial – often in the back of a police station – are not lawyers at all. Many indictments are done without legal counsel, prosecutors, court clerks, or even stenographers. Fortunately, the person arrested in Bronx Coney, New York City, will, with few exceptions, follow a highly organized path leading directly to his indictment. Courts, attorneys, prosecutors, stenographers, all those people or systems necessary to move the matter in a timely and orderly manner. However, as organized as it is, the process may seem like a joke to the general public, and even to the inexperienced legal practitioner. Below is a roadmap outlining the exact journey nearly all cases take from arrest to formal indictment proceedings. All criminal matters in the Bronx, New York, begin with the reporting of a crime, either by civilian witnesses, or by police officials. A civilian reporting a crime may be a true eyewitness, a victim of a criminal offense, or a representative of the victim, such as a parent. In addition, some classified professionals, such as social workers, physicians, lawyers, or legal guardians, are obligated by law to report certain offenses brought to their attention. The police may file a criminal complaint against an individual in the absence of any victims or witnesses. This usually occurs when the police notice that an individual is committing a crime, such as driving while intoxicated, possessing a gun, or selling and possessing drugs. After a complaint is filed by a civilian or monitored by the police, a potential suspect may not be arrested immediately. Police may make attempts to encourage a suspect to speak with the police in an effort to obtain incriminating statements, evidence, or proceeds of crime. Soon after the suspect speaks with the police or seeks legal counsel, he may actually be arrested. Arrest occurs when an individual’s freedom is physically restricted, either by handcuffing, physically restraining a suspect, or by threat of force. After arrest, the suspect is usually brought to the local police station for processing. Processing involves taking the suspect’s fingerprints for accurate identification of the individual based on any previous criminal history. If the individual does not have a previous police record, the fingerprint report will indicate this. Once the individual is printed, their NYSID number will appear on their fingerprint report. NYSID stands for New York State Definition. A person with a previous police record will be assigned the same NYSID number. The person who has never been arrested will be assigned a new NYSID number. The NYSID number is used to track a person’s criminal history throughout the state of New York. It also reveals whether or not a person has any injunctions pending, owes any fines to the court, or is wanted in another state, or other jurisdiction. An arrest number is also assigned to the suspect. The arrest number relates only to this particular arrest. In addition to printing and checking the records of the arrested person, photographs are also taken for identification purposes. The next step in the process is the actual filing of a police complaint report. A police complaint report is filled out by the officer who made the arrest. It provides a brief description of the crime, the evidence obtained, the names of the victims or witnesses, if any, and the exact charges for which the accused was arrested. The arrest report also contains the name, address and personal information of the accused. This information, known as ancestry, usually comes from the defendant himself, and becomes part of the official report. Once all this information is collected, the defendant, arrest reports, fingerprint reports, and all other relevant information is transferred to Central Booking.com. Central Booking is located in the Bronx Criminal Court Building. Here the complete file prepared by the police is submitted to the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office. The attorney general reviews the whole matter and decides whether to proceed with the arrest. If the prosecutor refuses to prosecute due to insufficient evidence, or for some other reason, the defendant will be released from custody, and all records and photos collected will be crossed out. If the order is not rejected, the public prosecutor will prepare a formal complaint from the criminal court. A criminal court complaint is a more detailed complaint of all charges brought against the defendant. It contains information about the evidence obtained, the names of witnesses, the dates and locations of the accused crimes, and an affidavit from the complaining witness, or the arresting officer. Once this affidavit is reviewed and signed, the whole matter is referred to the criminal court for indictment. An indictment is made when a defendant appears in court and is publicly notified that certain criminal charges will be brought against him/her. Before an indictment is brought to the criminal court, each criminal court complaint is assigned a number in the case file. The case number relates only to a particular criminal court complaint. However, before the actual suit is filed, the suspect, now the defendant, is entitled to legal counsel. The attorney assigned or appointed by the defendant will be provided with a copy of the official criminal court complaint, along with a copy of the defendant’s criminal background. The attorney is then allowed to speak with the defendant before trial. The purpose of this interview is for the attorney to notify the defendant of the charges that have been brought, obtain any important information, such as defense witnesses, discuss issues related to bail, and answer all legal questions of the defendant. Once this is complete, the defendant is brought before the court for indictment. The actual suit usually takes no more than a few minutes. The attorney general will usually notify the judge of the seriousness of the case before the court, and whether or not bail is sought. The public prosecutor also notifies the defense attorney whether or not the accused has made any statements, and if the defendant is identified on a list, or in some other way, such as a photo ID. Once the attorney general has finished addressing the court, the defense attorney speaks on behalf of the defendant. The primary goal of the defense attorney at this point is to release the defendant without bail, or on minimum terms of bail. The attorney may argue that the matter before the court is a minor criminal offense, legally inadequate, or represents the defendant’s first offense. The attorney may also argue that the defendant maintains strong societal ties, such as work and family, and is unlikely to guarantee this if released. At this point, the judge makes a decision on bail, simply defers the matter to further legal action, and completes the summons process.