Trial Proceedings

Misdemeanor Arraignment

A defendant’s first appearance before a judge is known as the arraignment. At the arraignment, defendants are informed of their constitutional rights, the nature of the charge(s) against them, and the maximum penalty associated with each charge. Defendants are also given an opportunity to enter a plea to the charge(s).  If a defendant decides to stand silent, the judge will enter a not guilty plea for each charge on the defendant’s behalf and set the case for further proceedings. Idaho recognizes only two pleas, guilty and not guilty; there is no option to plead “no contest” in Idaho.

If a defendant pleads guilty, the judge may proceed to sentencing immediately or set sentencing for a later date. Sentencing may be set out to allow time for the defendant to get any necessary evaluations, to provide any victim(s) with notice and an opportunity to be present, or to address other issues, such as determining the amount of restitution owed, prior to sentencing.

If a defendant pleads not guilty, the judge will ask whether the defendant wants to have a jury trial or a court trial (also called a bench trial). In a misdemeanor jury trial, the judge presides over the trial and a six-person jury decides whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. In a court trial, there is no jury; instead, the judge both presides over the trial and determines the verdict.

Misdemeanor Pretrial Proceedings

If a jury trial is chosen, there will usually be either two or three more court dates set. The first will be the pre-trial conference at which the defendant, defense counsel (if any), and the prosecutor all appear before the magistrate judge assigned to the case. The purpose of the pre-trial conference is to see if the case can be resolved short of trial or, if it cannot, to make sure that both the defense and the prosecution are ready to proceed to trial.

The second court date is the jury trial status call. It is held on the first court day of the jury trial week. All defendants and attorneys who still have cases set for jury trial that week are required to be present. The status call provides an opportunity for last minute resolution of the case short of trial or for one or both sides to seek continuance of the trial for various reasons.

Cases that don’t resolve or get continued at the status call will be assigned a specific trial date from the remaining days of the jury trial week. The defendant, defense counsel (if any), the prosecutor, and all witnesses must appear at court on the jury trial day.

If, on the other hand, a defendant waives the right to trial by jury and chooses to have a court trial, the next court date will typically be the court trial itself. At a court trial, the defendant, defense counsel (if any), the prosecutor, and all witnesses must be present on the trial date.

Pretrial Conference – In misdemeanor cases, the pretrial conference is the defendant's second court appearance. It is a scheduled hearing involving a prosecutor, defense counsel (if any), the defendant, and the judge to determine whether the case will go to trial or be resolved with a plea or dismissal. These meetings focus on resolving the case short of trial. If a plea bargain is going to be offered and/or accepted, it is usually done here.

Other Pretrial Proceedings – Many other events can occur prior to trial. Depending on the nature of the case, there may be pretrial hearings on Constitutional issues (confessions, searches, identification, etc.) or on issues with discovery. The issues are presented to the Court through written “motions” (e.g., Motion to Suppress, Motion in Limine, Motion to Compel, etc.), and then through a hearing on those written motions. After the hearing, the judge must determine whether to grant the relief requested in the motion, such as determining what evidence will be admitted or suppressed at the defendant's trial, whether there is some legal reason why the defendant should not be tried for the charge(s), or setting out other ground rules for trial.

Misdemeanor Trial (Jury or Bench/Court)

A trial is an adversarial proceeding in which the prosecution, acting on behalf of the People of the State of Idaho (the “State”), must present evidence to prove the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The defendant always starts with the presumption of innocence and is not required to prove his or her innocence or present any evidence during trial. Both the defendant and the State have the right to demand a jury trial. 

In a jury trial, a six-person jury will be picked by the parties from a panel of prospective jurors through a process called voir dire.  Once selected, the jury is sworn and provided preliminary instructions on the law. The parties may then make opening statements, after which the prosecution presents evidence, followed by the defense. The defendant is not required to present any evidence or testify but may challenge the accuracy or credibility of the State’s evidence. If the defense presents evidence, the State may offer rebuttal evidence.  Following the submission of all evidence, the judge provides the jury with final instructions on the law, and the parties present their closing arguments to the jury. The jury then deliberates and reaches a verdict.

In a court trial (or “bench trial”), the judge—instead of a jury—acts as the finder of fact and will decide whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty.  As a result, a court trial does not include the voir dire and jury selection process; instead, the trial begins by proceeding directly to opening statement and the presentation of evidence. After the evidence is presented, the judge will determine whether the evidence proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed the crime. 

General Outline of a Misdemeanor Jury Trial in Kootenai County

• Residents of Kootenai County are randomly selected from a Secretary of State list of licensed drivers and are summoned to the Court as potential jurors; the pool of potential jurors is known as the “venire.”
• From that pool, fourteen (14) jurors are selected by blind draw to act as the presumptive panel from which the parties will select the final six-person jury.
• The Judge, prosecutor, and defense attorney question the jurors about their backgrounds and beliefs during a process known as “voir dire.”
• The attorneys may challenge jurors “for cause” if the answers they provide during voir dire reveal potential bias or other reasons that would justify removing them from the presumptive panel.
• If a juror is removed from the presumptive panel for cause, they are replaced by random draw with another member from the general jury pool.
• Once both sides pass the fourteen-person panel “for cause,” they are then permitted to exercise a limited number of “peremptory” challenges (typically four (4) per side) to remove jurors from the presumptive panel without having to provide a basis for doing so.
• After both sides have exercised their peremptory challenges and six acceptable jurors remain, the jury is sworn in and the judge reads basic instructions about the trial process.
• The prosecutor gives an opening statement to outline for the jury or court the State’s case and expected evidence to be introduced during trial.
• The defense may give a similar opening statement at that time or may choose to wait to do so later in the trial.
• The prosecutor will then call the State’s witnesses, which the defense may cross-examine, and seek to admit relevant exhibits into evidence, which the defense may challenge.
• When the prosecutor has finished introducing witness testimony and exhibits, the State will rest its case.
• If the defense chooses to wait to give an opening statement, it may do so after the State has rested and before presenting its case in chief.
• The defendant is never required to testify, nor does the defense have to present any evidence during trial.
• If defense opts to present a case in chief, the prosecutor may cross-examine any witnesses and challenge any exhibits.
• The defense then rests.
• Once the defense rests, the State may present “rebuttal” evidence to challenge any evidence presented by the defense.
• the State then rests its rebuttal case.
• After both sides have rested, the judge will then conduct a final conference with them outside the presence of the jury to finalize the instructions to be given to the jury as to the applicable law and how to deliberate.
• The jury then returns and the judge gives the jury those final instructions.
• The prosecutor then presents a closing argument to the jury, after which the defense presents its closing argument.
• Because the State bears the burden of proof, the prosecutor may present a rebuttal argument to the jury to respond to the defense closing argument.
• The jury then retires to the jury room to deliberate and returns a verdict for each charge, if they are able to do so.
• If the jury is unable to reach a unanimous verdict of guilty or not guilty for the charged offense(s), a mistrial will be declared, and the case may need to be retried before a different jury.
• If the jury reaches a verdict of not guilty for the charge(s), the defendant is released, the charge(s) are dismissed, and the case is closed.
• If the jury reaches a verdict finding the defendant guilty of one or more charge, the Court will impose sentence immediately or at a future date, depending on many factors.

Judgment and Sentencing

At sentencing, the parties present arguments (and sometimes evidence) in support of the sentence each side views to be most appropriate for the crime(s) for which the defendant is found guilty.  During the State’s presentation, any victim(s) of the defendant’s crimes may provide a statement directly to the court or through the prosecutor.  The defendant is also given an opportunity to give a statement on their own behalf; however, they are not required to do so.  

After both sides, any involved victim(s), and the defendant have been given an opportunity to provide arguments and statements, the judge then announces the defendant’s sentence in open court.  That sentence may include some or all of the following elements depending on the nature of the offense, the defendant’s prior criminal history, and any aggravating or mitigating factors the judge identifies:

• Imposed jail time up to a maximum of one (1) year (or less, depending on the specific offense(s) involved) to be served in the Kootenai County Jail
• Sheriff’s Labor Program (SLP) shifts or community service hours to be completed in lieu of imposed jail time
• Fines, fees, court costs, and (if applicable) restitution
• Driver’s license suspensions or other restrictions on the defendant’s ability to drive for relevant offenses
• Suspended jail time that may be imposed upon violation of a term of probation of up to two (2) years
  • The probation term may be ordered to be supervised, meaning the defendant will be monitored by an officer with Kootenai County Adult Misdemeanor Probation (AMP), or it may be unsupervised, meaning no probation officer is involved, but the defendant must still abide by specific terms set by the judge.
• Probation terms may require the defendant to do or not do many things, including, but not limited to, the following:
  • Not commit any additional crimes and/or similar offenses
  • Keep the court updated as to any change in the defendant’s address
  • Not consume any alcohol and/or drugs not prescribed by a doctor
  • Not drive a motor vehicle without a valid license and required insurance
  • Not contact the involved victim(s) and/or go to specific places
  • Provide proof of completing specified evaluations and any recommended treatment, or other relevant courses or classes, within the time set by the judge
  • Provide written updates or attend review hearings at intervals set by the judge
  • Other requirements the judge may deem appropriate under the circumstances

After the sentence is announced in open court, the defendant will receive a copy of the judgment that sets forth the details and specific terms of that sentence. The judgment is a court order and failure to follow every term could result in either contempt of court or a probation violation being filed.

Probation Violations

A violation of probation can lead to revocation of probation and the imposition of a jail sentence. Consequences for the conviction of Probation Violation may potentially include:

• Probation revoked and sentence imposed
• Jail Imposed
• Additional Fines
• Probation reinstatement under the previous terms
• Imposition of additional probation terms

Infractions

The following is an overview of how the infraction court system operates in Kootenai County.

• Citation
  All infraction cases begin with the issuance of a uniform citation, which serves as both a criminal complaint and a summons. The citation specifies a date by which the defendant must enter a plea or pay the citation.
• First Appearance Before Court
  The defendant must appear at the clerk’s office on or before the date shown on the citation. The purpose of this appearance is to enter a plea of guilty or not guilty to the charged infraction offense(s). If the defendant fails to appear at the clerk’s office to enter a plea, the court enters a guilty plea by default and sends notice to the defendant of their requirement to pay the fixed penalty. If the defendant appears at the clerk’s office prior to or at the time set on the citation, they can enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. If the defendant pleads guilty, they will be required to pay the fixed fine(s) associated with the cited offense(s) within fourteen (14) days. If the defendant pleads not guilty, the court will provide the defendant with a date and time to appear at a pretrial conference.
• Attorneys
  Defendants may retain private counsel for infraction cases; however, because jail time cannot be imposed for infractions, indigent defendants are not entitled to court‑appointed counsel.
• Pretrial Conference 
  At the pretrial conference, the Prosecuting Attorney and court clerk meet with the defendant to attempt resolution. The judge does not participate in the pretrial conference. If an infraction is admitted, payment of the fixed penalty is due within thirty (30) days. If the parties are not able to reach a resolution for one or more of the cited offenses, the case will be set for an infraction court trial.
• Trial
  There is no right to a jury trial in infraction cases. All trials are decided by a magistrate judge. On the date of the infraction court trial, the judge will call the case in whatever order he or she deems appropriate.
• Fixed Fines   
  The fines for infraction offenses are fixed by court rule. The magistrate has no discretion to increase or decrease the fine. A list of the fixed fine amount for most infraction offenses is set forth in Idaho Infraction Rule 9.
• Assessment of Points to Driving Records  
  The judge does not have any control over the assessment of points on a defendant’s driving record. Instead, points are assessed by the Idaho Transportation Department.