I represent people accused of committing criminal offenses in every court in Las Vegas and Southern Nevada, including Henderson and North Las Vegas. But Las Vegas Justice Court is where most of my cases originate. Las Vegas Justice Court is where an accused person will make his initial appearance, where his bail will be set, and where his case will be negotiated pursuant to a plea deal or go to trial (or preliminary hearing) in front of a Justice of the Peace (Justice Court Judge).
Many of my clients have questions about the Justice Court process. What are the different hearings? When does the defendant need to appear in court? How long does it take to finish a case and get it closed? Who will be the sentencing judge? Can I be sent back to jail after bailing out? In this article, I will answer these questions as well as provide other basic information about Las Vegas Justice Court. I will focus on Las Vegas Justice Court, but the information in this article applies generally to all of the Justice Courts in Clark County, including the rural courts. This article does not apply to the local municipal courts, like Las Vegas Municipal Court. If you don't know the difference between the Justice Courts and the Municipal Courts, reading this article might help you.
Hearings in Las Vegas Justice Court
There are many different kinds of hearings in Las Vegas Justice Court. First, let's talk about what a "hearing" actually is. A hearing means your case is on the court's "calendar" for a particular date and time and for a particular purpose. So a hearing starts when the court clerk hands the judge a file from the court's daily calendar and the judge takes the file and "calls" the case by stating the case name and number on the "record." The "record" in Justice Court is everything stated in open court as transcribed by the department's court reporter, minus any unrecorded "bench conferences" between prosecutors, the judge, and defense counsel. With few exceptions, criminal court hearings are open to the public. Read about the different types of Justice Court hearings below.
Arraignment/Initial Appearance/48 and 72 Hour Hearing/Bail Hearing
Technically, an arraignment is the defendant's initial appearance in court, where he receives his formal written charges (in the form of a criminal complaint) and enters a plea of not guilty. But in Las Vegas Justice Court, there are two types of initial appearances that should be discussed: the 48 hour hearing and the 72 hour hearing.
The first hearing in Las Vegas Justice Court, for people who have been arrested and incarcerated in Clark County Detention Center, is the 48 Hour Hearing. But that hearing is "in camera," meaning that the judge reviews the charges "in chambers" (not in open court) and decides whether to adjust standard bail for the charges.
The first true in-court hearing for defendants who are in custody (incarcerated temporarily in Clark County Detention Center) is the 72 Hour Hearing. This hearing, for defendants who are in custody, is the initial appearance or the initial arraignment. At this hearing, the defendant receives the criminal complaint and enters a plea of not guilty (this part is the arraignment). Then, at this same hearing, the Judge decides whether to adjust (hopefully lower) the bail or release the defendant without bail (called an "own recognizance release" or "OR release.")
If you bail out of CCDC or you were never arrested in the first place (because you got a misdemeanor citation or the DA asked for a summons in lieu of an arrest warrant), then your first appearance in Las Vegas Justice Court is an initial arraignment (initial appearance), which is sometimes coded by the Justice Court Clerks as "return court date." If you have an attorney, in almost all instances he can appear at this hearing without you, which is good news for defendants who live or have moved out of state.
Plea Negotiations
After the initial appearance, the next hearing will either be a status check on negotiations or a trial/preliminary hearing. If the next hearing set is a status check on negotiations, this implies that the case may be negotiated (i.e., a plea agreement may be reached between the parties). If your case is negotiated for a misdemeanor, you'll stay in Justice Court. If your plea deal contemplates a felony, gross misdemeanor, or "wobbler" plea, then you will "waive up" to District Court and proceed to sentencing in front of a District Court Judge. If the case does not get negotiated, then you will proceed to a preliminary hearing (if your charge is a felony or gross misdemeanor) or trial (if your case is a misdemeanor).
Trial
A trial in Las Vegas Justice Court is a "bench trial," meaning it's done in front of a judge, not a jury. Like any trial, in a bench trial the prosecutor calls and questions witnesses and the defense gets to cross examine (question) all of these witnesses. When the prosecutor calls all their witnesses and presents all its evidence the defense may call any witnesses it wants. In a bench trial in Justice Court, Tthe judge hears the evidence then makes a decision that same day, determining whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty. If the judge finds you not guilty (acquits you) then you go free. If the judge finds you guilty, then he gets to determine the sentence, which could include jail time, fines, community service, and more.
Preliminary Hearing
If you have a felony or gross misdemeanor charge and you don't enter into a plea deal, then your last stop in Las Vegas Justice Court will be preliminary hearing. The format of the preliminary hearing is like a trial. The prosecutor calls witnesses, the defense attorney can cross examine those witnesses, then the defense may call any witnesses he has. Then the judge makes a decision. But the decision isn't "guilty" or "not guilty." Instead, the judge determines whether the charges will be dismissed or if the case will be "bound over" to district court to set a jury trial. Specifically, at the close of a preliminary hearing, the judge determines whether the prosecutor has presented enough evidence for the case to continue. Technically, the prosecutor must show "probable cause" for the case to continue. "Probable cause" means evidence that a crime occurred and that the accused person "probably" committed the crime. This sounds like a fairly high standard, but Nevada case law says that all the prosecution must show for the case to be sent to District Court for trial is "slight or marginal evidence" of guilt.
Status Check on Requirements
If you work out a plea deal or are found guilty of a misdemeanor, you most likely have to pay some fine, complete community service, attend court-ordered counseling, or complete other requirements imposed by the Justice Court Judge.
A status check on requirements is usually set out at least a few months from the time the defendant enters into a plea negotiation. At this hearing, the defendant (usually represented by an attorney) presents proof to the court that he/she has completed the Court's orders. If progress is satisfactory, then another hearing is set. This goes on until all court-ordered requirements are completed and the case is closed. Generally, a defendant who is compliant (making satisfactory progress on requirements) doesn't need to show up at these status hearings.
If a defendant does not complete the ordered requirements or picks up new criminal charges and then doesn't show up at the next hearing, the Judge may issue a bench warrant.
Bench Warrant Return
When you no-show a court date in Justice Court, the judge will issue a bench warrant. A bench warrant is an order to law enforcement to arrest a person for failing to appear in court. When a Judge issues a bench warrant, this may be a "no bail" bench warrant or bail may be set at some other amount. Sometimes, if the only requirement left in the case is payment of a fine, the Judge may set bail in the amount of the fine, cash only, no bond.
So when a bench warrant is issued, the defendant can post bail or bond to "quash" or "recall" (get rid of) the warrant—if the bench warrant is not set as "no bail." But if you come into contact with law enforcement while the bench warrant is active, you'll be taken to jail and brought before your Judge on a bench warrant return.
At a bench warrant return, you will ordinarily be facing a high likelihood of being sentenced to suspended jail time (or contempt jail time if your case wasn't resolved with suspended jail time).
Motion Hearings
A motion is simply a request that the court do something. A motion can be oral or written, but a hearing can only be scheduled for a written motion. There are many kinds of written hearings in Las Vegas Justice Court. These commonly include motion to quash bench warrant, motion to file amended criminal complaint, motion to reduce bail, motion to remand defendant into custody, motion to exonerate bond, motion to consolidate cases, motion to withdraw as counsel, and many others.
Who will be my judge?
If your case is in Las Vegas Justice Court, then your judge is the Justice of the Peace for the department that your case was assigned to. If your charge is a misdemeanor, you will keep your one judge for the duration of your case.
But what if your case is bound over to District Court? Who will be your sentencing Judge? With a few exceptions, each Justice Court department tracks up randomly to one of two District Court departments. So for instance, Justice Court Department 1 "tracks up" to two District Courts: Department 25 and Department 20. Below is a table listing the departments in Las Vegas Justice Court and the District Court departments they track up to. So for most felony cases in Las Vegas Justice Court, you won't be able to tell who your District Court Judge will be until you waive up or are bound over to District Court, but you can narrow down the possibilities to one of two Judges.
Do I have to show up for court?
If you have a case in Las Vegas Justice Court, you have to show up for all your court appearances, but if you have an attorney representing you, you don't have to show up for most court appearances. In some cases, having an attorney means that you won't ever have to personally appear in court. Most people ask whether they have to appear personally at their initial appearance/arraignment in Las Vegas Justice Court. Check with your attorney, but in most instances, you won't have to go to your initial court appearance if you are not in custody and you have an attorney.
How long will my case last?
That depends on the nature and seriousness of your charges. Sometimes a simple misdemeanor can be handled in a matter of weeks (or less) from your initial court appearance. Even some felony charges can be handled and disposed of favorably in a very short period of time. On the other hand, some felony charges take much longer to resolve favorably. In these cases, your case will probably not be resolved in Las Vegas Justice Court. Instead, you may find yourself headed to District Court to either resolve your case or go to jury trial. If your case takes this path, the matter may not be resolved for a year or more.
Can I go to court before my scheduled arraignment date?
Yes, in many instances. If you bailed out of jail (or were otherwise released) and you have an upcoming court date months in the future, you can get on calendar in Las Vegas Justice Court early, so long as the District Attorney has filed a criminal complaint, because as soon as a complaint is filed you can be arraigned.
If you are arrested or get a citation, the arresting police officers are basically just referring criminal charges to the District Attorney for prosecution. Cops don't actually charge anyone with criminal offenses. That's a common misconception. Cops just investigate crimes and refer charges to the prosecutor. It is then the District Attorney's job to decide what formal charges to pursue by filing a formal charging document called a criminal complaint. When you are arrested and bail out, you will receive an "out-of-custody" court date, which is often several months in the future. The time between your arrest and the scheduled future court appearance is supposed to allow the District Attorney time to determine what charges to file (or whether to file charges at all).
But oftentimes the District Attorney will actually file the criminal complaint early—sometimes several weeks or even months before the scheduled arraignment. Once the complaint is filed, there is no need to wait until the scheduled future court date. You can go into court, enter a plea of not guilty, and get the case moving. So if you don't want to wait and you want to get your case behind you ask quickly as possible, you should talk to a criminal defense attorney about placing your case on calendar for an early arraignment. In most departments in Las Vegas Justice Court it will only take two business days to place your case on calendar for an early arraignment.
What are my charges?
If you were arrested, the charges you were booked into jail on are not necessarily the charges you will face in Las Vegas Justice Court. Your charges will be contained in the criminal complaint, the District Attorney's formal charging document. If you don't have a criminal complaint because you didn't go to court yet, you might try searching the Las Vegas Justice Court Records database. You may find that a complaint has been filed. Keep in mind, the Justice Court database uses certain notations that might be confusing. For instance, a "999" notation is used to indicate charges that were referred by police but not filed by the District Attorney. Charges are listed in a general way as they appear in Nevada law, which sometimes leads to confusion. So, for instance, if a person is arrested and charged with possessing cocaine with the intent to sell, this charge will be denoted in the Justice Court database like this: "Poss to sell sch I/II, flntrzpm/GHB," which leads many people to believe, incorrectly, that they have been charged with possessing GHB (known as a "date rape" drug). The denotation for the Justice Court database only indicates generally that the person has been charged with possessing either a schedule I or II controlled substance or GHB with the intent to sell. The charge denotation doesn't actually indicate what controlled substance the defendant possessed.
Can you help me?
I have represented more people in Las Vegas Justice Court than I can remember, so if you are facing criminal charges in Justice Court, I can help you. I can't guarantee any particular outcome to a case, but if I represent you, I will do whatever I can to resolve your charges quickly and favorably. Contact me right now and I can give you an honest assessment of your case. Consultations are free.
When you're facing criminal charges, you need more than just a lawyer. You need someone who understands the system, knows how to fight, and won’t back down. I’ve spent years defending clients in Las Vegas courts, building a reputation for aggressive advocacy and honest, effective representation. If you’re ready to put this behind you, I’m here to help you move forward.
— Michael Pandullo
