Circuit Court

If the Grand Jury returns an indictment and endorses it as a “true bill”, the case will then proceed to Circuit Court where felony cases, along with the misdemeanors that accompany them, are tried in front of a jury. Once the case has been assigned to a circuit court judge, the defendant will be arraigned in open court and they may then plead guilty, not guilty, or not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. If the defendant wishes to have a jury trial, the judge will set a date for the trial as well as dates for any other necessary pre-trial hearings. If the defendant is found guilty by the jury, the judge will sentence them.