Pre-Charge / Pre-Indictment Lawyers

Sometimes people are arrested and charged with a criminal offense then criminal charges are suddenly dismissed or “scratched” without explanation. Do not be fooled or caught off guard by this seemingly positive turn of events. In many cases, these charges are re-instituted and bench warrants for arrest are routinely issued when the person charged is not immediately available. Although there are times when a prosecutor intentionally decides not to file criminal charges, many times when criminal charges suddenly disappear there is more going on than is immediately apparent. In state prosecutions, most felony crimes have a seven-year statute of limitation. This means a prosecutor has up to seven years to file criminal charges for most felony crimes.

Felony Statute of Limitations

Some felony crimes have no statute of limitation at all. Oftentimes, the sudden disappearance of criminal charges is due to a police officer failing to timely complete a report to submit to the prosecutor for review. Sometimes the officer’s report is submitted for review, but the prosecutor has not had an opportunity to review the report to determine what criminal charges to file. Other times, a prosecutor may have reviewed the report but decided additional investigation or scientific testing is needed before proceeding. Finally, the case may be in the process of being submitted to a grand jury for its consideration and determination of criminal charges.

If you believe that you are going to be charged with a crime in the near future, contact the Attorneys for Freedom Law Firm or call our Arizona office at 480-755-7110 or Hawai’i office at 808-647-2423 and our experienced pre-charge lawyers can help!