Criminal Appeals

What is a Criminal Appeal?

When you make a criminal appeal, you are basically asking the courts to reconsider the original verdict. An appellate court, where appeals are made, has more power than a criminal court and can override any decisions made there. An appeal can also be made to ask the courts to reconsider a sentence. Anyone convicted of a crime has the ‘right to appeal’ and may take the case to a higher court in order to see if there has been a mistake in the criminal process. Sometimes a defendant may waive their right to appeal during a plea bargain, however some steps may still be taken. In order to make a strong appeal, you should review your case with a Criminal Defense Attorney.

What Are My Chances of Appellate Success?

Criminal appeals are very difficult because appellate judges are reluctant to overturn the decisions of the lower courts. Furthermore, the criminal justice system does not ensure defendants the perfect trial. A decision will usually only be overturned if the original trial had significant errors. Errors that are ‘harmless’ errors will not lead to a reversal. Most of the time, any errors that are found will be ruled harmless.

When an error is so large that it had a large affect on the outcome of the trial, then the decision will be overturned. It is always a good idea to have the best criminal lawyer you can find when making an appeal. This will help to convince the judge that any errors had a large affect on the outcome of the original trial.

Sentences can also be appealed, but they are difficult to change. Normally a sentence will only be changed if the judge made a large mistake that contradicted sentencing laws.

When To Appeal

An appeal must be made almost immediately after being convicted of a crime. In New York (NY) an offender must make a criminal appeal within 30 days of the date of sentencing. If they wait any longer than that, they will have to file an explanation of why the notification was delayed. It is important to note that even thought the appeal must be announced immediately, the case will not necessarily be reviewed by a judge for several months.

After the trial is over and a sentence has been decided upon by the judge, it is every person’s right to appeal the conviction or the sentence. It is possible to appeal a case no matter what the sentence is. It is even possible to appeal a case where you made a guilty plea or plea bargain. Sometimes part of a plea bargain involves giving up your right to plea. If this happens, you may lose some of your power to appeal, however, there are still some things that can be reviewed by the appellate court.

Appeals are decided by the Court of Appeals, which consists of a panel of judges called ‘‘appellate judges’’. If you want to bring your case to an appeals court, you need a criminal defense lawyer that knows how to make a successful criminal appeal. Appeals and the Court of Appeals have different rules and customs than other courts. It is important than your New York (NY) criminal defense attorney is experienced in all aspects of criminal appeals in order to successfully defend you.

Appeals must be made within 30 days after the date of the sentencing. To make an appeal, your New York Criminal Attorney will file a notice with the court clerk and the prosecutor’s office. If a notice is not given within the 30 days then special permission must be requested from the court by making a motion for an extension. This motion must be made within a year and thirty days after the day of sentencing. In order to successfully make this motion you must have a valid reason for not making the motion within the first 30 day time period.

If you cannot afford a criminal defense attorney for an appeal, it is your right to have the court appoint you one, just as it is in a regular trial. However, it is always a good idea to get your own criminal lawyer because they will put much more time and effort into your appeal.

Making an Appeal

The criminal defense lawyer that you end up getting for your appeals trial will receive all the information on your case, including transcripts from the court proceedings, any paperwork, and any evidence, including exhibits. After looking over the material, your attorney will prepare a motion to appeal, and sometimes this must be accompanied by an explanation in appeals court. If this is the case, your criminal defense attorney will personally go down the appellate court and explain why they think there is sufficient cause for an appeals trial. During this ‘‘appellate argument’’ you will not be able to attend if you are currently imprisoned. However, if your conviction did not involve a prison sentence, then you will be free to go.

Outcomes of an Appeal

What you are looking for from the appeals court is most likely the approval to have an appeals trial. However, they may rule an ‘‘affirmance’’ which means that they believe the original trial showed that you were guilty beyond reasonable doubt. If this is the case, you will have a difficult time making further appeals, and will have limited rights in taking your case further with the Court of Appeals. Basically, if they affirm your conviction, you will no longer be able to appeal. It is possible to take some cases further by going to the United States Supreme Court. You should consult your criminal defense attorney as to what options are available in with your case.

If your conviction ends up being reversed, you could receive a number of different outcomes. Sometimes, a case can be dismissed, or a new trial can be opened. These are usually the best outcomes in an appeal. At other times, a conviction may be modified, resulting in lesser charges or a lowered sentence or both. Any of these issues could also be put back into trial court, meaning that there would be hearings to determine the outcome of the specific issue.

Application for a Stay

During the appeal process, it is possible to be released from prison pending the outcome of the new trial. In order to do so, your criminal attorney must file an ‘‘application for a stay’’. If the application is granted, you can be released on bail, but whether it is possible or not depends on your case and the circumstances surrounding the appeal. An application for a stay is not possible if you are convicted for a class A felony. You can only make this application once during the appeal, but can try again if the case goes to the Court of Appeals.

People’s Appeal

In some cases, even though the charges may be dismissed during an appeal, the prosecutor may be able to make their own appeal to bring the charges back once they have been dismissed. This is called a ‘‘People’’s appeal’’. If the prosecution is successful then the case may come back.

Appeals Process

During a criminal appeal, the defendant will now be referred to as the ‘appellant’ because they are appealing a decision of the courts. The criminal attorney will advocate that the conclusion of the original trial was not just, and they will provide evidence to back up the claim.

When an appeal is made, the courts will look over the record of the previous trial. This means that they will read the transcripts of the court proceedings and examine the evidence and testimony that was provided. They will not look at any new evidence.

The next stage is where the courts look at the briefs of both sides. When making a criminal appeal, the prosecutor will be notified and will begin to defendant the original verdict. Both the prosecutor and criminal attorney will make a written ‘brief’ which the judge will read when considering whether to approve the appeal. The criminal attorney will create a brief that explains why the original verdict was wrong. It is uncommon for an attorney to be allowed to make an oral presentation before the judge. In rare circumstances, these presentations will be brief and within a strict time limit.

Can the prosecutor appeal a verdict?

It is very common for a defendant to appeal a guilty verdict. Usually only the criminal defense can make this appeal; a prosecutor is not allowed to make a criminal appeal because it would violate the right against double jeopardy - to be put on trial twice for the same crime. Other types of appeals which occur during a trial and do not involve the verdict directly can be made by a prosecutor.

Appealing the Death Penalty

Many offenders who have been sentenced to death will appeal the sentence. Once all of the appeals have been used, the criminal defense will often resort to asking for a writ of habeas corpus. This is not commonly given, even to those who have been sentenced to death. However, if an experienced criminal lawyer makes the request, the appellate courts may review the records and briefs very carefully to see if a death sentence is warranted.

What happens when I lose a criminal appeal?

If a criminal appeal does not work at first, then you can get your appeals attorney to take the case to a higher court. Normally, an appeal can only be made to a court with more authority than the last appeal. So, a verdict from a state criminal court will be appealed to an intermediary appellate court; a verdict from that court must be appealed to a higher appellate court and so on.

What is the cost of an appeal?

Appeals typically cost less than the a felony case. The price depends on the case itself, and how well each side prepares their arguments. Certain types of appeals, where a defendant wants to claim that their verdict was unfair because most of the evidence indicated their innocence will be much more expensive. This is a longer process and will require more of the criminal attorney’s time.