Crime & Traffic

When you are arrested, you are usually then charged with a crime. This means the government has accused you of that crime. Once you have been charged, you will have court dates to attend. You have the right to an attorney you hire or a court-appointed attorney being present with you during court appearances.

Being charged does not mean that you have been convicted or that you will be convicted, but that might happen later.

A criminal case can have many different results, for example:

• You can be found guilty (convicted),
• You can be found not guilty (acquitted),
• The charges against you can be dismissed (dropped), or
• The charges against you can be reduced to a lesser crime.

Effective January 1, 2025, the definition of "conviction" will be amended to clarify that if judgment is withheld, a plea, verdict, or finding of guilty will not be considered a conviction until the judgment is officially entered.