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Posted on April 2, 2020 in News
In many ways, the effects of the current ongoing COVID-19 pandemic situation has affected each and every person in some way or another. The fear and anxiety that one can experience facing criminal charges and going through a criminal case can be in itself unsettling and frustrating, before having to deal with these unprecedented times.
A common question we are receiving from clients is how the COVID-19 outbreak will affect the length of their criminal case. As it stands, it will most likely affect the length of a criminal case through the Courts. Currently, the Supreme Court of Arizona has instructed Courts to liberally grant continuances, in turn, we have seen overwhelmingly Courts have been granting these requests. In addition to this instruction, Courts have also been instructed to follow CDC guidelines.
This has caused Courts to continue Court dates on their own. Thus, your case is going to last a lot longer than it normally would.
Another noticeable impact of COVID-19 that has been felt on criminal cases, is that as it stands right now, all trials have been vacated. The Courts are setting the new trial dates out several months in the future. There has been no indication made on whether these new trial dates will proceed or get continued. The effect of all trial dates been pushed out means that when trials in the Courts start up again, there will be a huge backlog of trials. This may work out in favor of your case, as this will give your Phoenix criminal defense lawyer a good opportunity to negotiate with the prosecutor on a deal on your case as they may be eager to resolve as many cases that are set to trial as possible.
Typically, on a self-surrender jail term, the jail time must start in 30 days, absent extraordinary circumstances. Obviously, COVID-19 can be seen as an extraordinary circumstance that would warrant starting the jail well past the 30-day mark. If you have underlying health conditions, this can be used as additional information to support your request to the judge in setting your jail time even further out. If you already have a confinement order, you need to file a motion to modify the confinement order and start the jail further into the future.
The effects of Coronavirus on a criminal case can be stressful and confusing if you are facing criminal charges, this means it will likely take a lot longer to resolve than typical along with some complex issues that may arise along the way. Speaking with an experienced criminal defense attorney who has intrinsic knowledge of the Court and criminal justice system would be the best step to take to ensure the best possible outcome in your case. The team of criminal defense attorneys here at AZ Defenders has over 100 years of combined experience in handling all types of criminal charges. You can trust the AZ Defenders legal team to fight hard for your defense, from start to finish. Call today at 480-456-6400 or contact us online for a free consultation so that we can begin working on your individualized defense and help you get the best possible result in your case.