Can a case be dismissed for changing the dates too many times?
It depends. Criminal defendants have a right to a speedy trial. The clock starts ticking at arraignment, and if the government does not bring the case to trial before the time runs out the case can be dismissed.However, if the dates have been changed because the defense attorney asked for more time to investigate, or the defendant asked for time to meet with his lawyer, etc, then the defendant had waived that time and it will not count towards the clock.Also, the judge can order that a time period doesn’t count if there’s “good cause” for the continuance. This could include a witness who is out of the country and won’t be available on the date of trial, an unavoidable delay in obtaining evidence (something new was just discovered, or a scientific lab result is still being processed), etc.Where I practice, a person charged with a misdemeanor has a right to trial within 60 days if they are in jail, or 90 days if they are not in jail. It is common for cases to take longer than that - people often need at least 1.5 months to even get an appointment with their public defender. Our court has a goal of trying to wrap up cases within 6 months. Defendants agree to this longer period because they (and their attorneys) need the time to prepare just as much as police and prosecutors do.
Dropped case vs dismissed case?
The answer is in the names: A "dropped" case is a case dropped by the DA prior to making it to court. i.e. Dropped from the court calender. A "dismissed" case is one that has made it to a court proceeding and is dismissed by the judge. A case may be dismissed at any stage of the trial from arraignment to jury trial. One more thing about dismissal, a case may be dismissed with or without "prejudice" by the judge: Without prejudice means s/he feels the DA has a case, but not enough evidence to bring it to trial. With prejudice means s/he feels the DA is completely wrong in bringing this case to trial.
What is the difference between an Arraignment Hearing and...?
Arraignment is the first phase of a criminal case after arrest. Its where a person sees a judge and the judge reads the charges to the defendant, orders of protection are issued and other applications to the court are made. The judge has the option to either ROR's (release on his own recognizance) him or sets bail on him since they view him as a flight risk. If bail is set, you can pay the bail, 24 hours a day to have him released. If you cannot afford to pay cash, you can find a bail bondsman, who will take the title of one of your assetts (home, car, trailer, etc). You will need to have AT LEAST 10% CASH of the bond amount, which will not be returned to you. A preliminary hearing is a bit different by jurisdiction. Some jurisdictions perform swearability hearings for YOUNG witnesses, they can perform a probable cause hearing, give rulings on admissibility of evidence, oral and written statements, an order of protection hearing or just about anything else. However, in my jurisdiction, these hearings usually take place after motions are submitted and the court decides whether a defendant has the rights to the hearings that he's requesting.
What happens at the formal arraignment?
Arraignment is where the charges are explained to the defendant and the bail, if any, is set. In the mean time he will need an attorney. If he does not have one the court will assign a public defender. The court will decide whether or not the public defender will be paid by the county or your fiance. A motion hearing or a plea hearing will usually follow within 3 to 6 weeks.
I was the victim in a criminal case that was dismissed, how can I find out why the DA dismissed it after arraignment?
By applying for a certified copy of the Order in the Court in which the case was decided. Ask any local clerk/ small time lawyer, they will charge you a small amount of fee and get you a certified copy of the Order. You will get all the details there. If it is still not clear, ask for the entire case records.
Can we sue to collect costs of arrest if case gets dismissed by court?
you can sue for wrongful arrest...get a good attorney and you can win big :)