What To Know About Court Motions
If you’ve ever watched a courtroom drama unfold on the big screen or on television, you’ve heard lawyers make motions. While you’ve probably never really thought about them, the fact is various motions can make an immense difference in the outcome of a trial.
What Exactly are Motions?
Written requests made by prosecutors and defense attorneys in criminal courts are called motions. These motions request that the judge make certain decisions, or judgments– before or during a trial. They are official appeals for rulings that will heighten their odds of success in the trial.
Commonly Made Motions
There are many types of motions that may be requested in a criminal trial. Five of the most common motions include:
- A Motion for a Change of Venue: In highly broadcasted cases, pre-trial publicity may threaten the neutrality of potential jurors, so there may be a request to move a trial to another county or state in order to protect the right of a defendant to a fair trial.
- A Motion to Dismiss: In some situations an attorney may request that the judge dismiss a case altogether before it even starts. Such a request could be on the grounds that there is not enough evidence to support the charges, the statute of limitations has run out, that the court doesn’t have jurisdiction on the matter, or that the alleged facts of the case do not amount to a crime, for example.
- A Motion to Suppress: Sometimes a judge is asked to exclude particular evidence at trial. There could be various reasons for this, including that one side believes the evidence was Illegally obtained, has been tampered with, has experienced problems with the chain of custody, some other issue with the evidence in question.
- A Motion for Discovery: Sometimes the opposing party is slow in sharing documents, witness lists, and other information that’s been uncovered during the discovery process. The law requires them to provide such information to opposing counsel, so an attorney may file a Motion to Compel, which can force them to produce information, witnesses, and documents they have been withholding.
- A Motion for Summary Judgment: When one side believes that the material facts of the case point to an obvious conclusion and indisputable conclusion, they may ask the judge to decide the case midway through a trial based on what’s already been presented. If the judge agrees that the facts of the case are not in dispute, a summary judgment can wrap things up quickly and easily.
Salazar & Kelly
At the office of Salazar & Kelly Law Group you can count on our Kissimmee and Orlando criminal defense attorneys to be prepared to deal with all aspects of a trial, from the technical and intricate details to the execution of well-designed examinations of witnesses on the stand. To discuss your situation, schedule a confidential consultation today.
Source:
justice.gov/usao/justice-101/pretrial-motions
