The detectives have her." After the sound of a gunshot, the line goes dead. A 911 tape recorded Yolanda's mother screaming: "She ain't here Robert. She brought her infant daughter along but left her 17-year-old son with her parents so that he could finish high school and graduate.Ī month later, McCoy was arrested and charged with killing his wife's parents and her son. With the help of police, she had fled her Louisiana home after McCoy, at knifepoint, threatened to kill her. The defendant, Robert McCoy, was charged with killing three family members in a vain attempt to find his estranged wife, Yolanda. Justices liberal and conservative signaled that they have a problem with a lawyer who disregards his client's express wishes by conceding the defendant's guilt. The question before the justices was whether that violated the client's constitutional right to counsel. Jurors were told that the accused was guilty of a triple murder - but the lawyer making that statement was not the prosecutor he was the defense attorney. Supreme Court Wednesday had a surprise plot twist. Supreme Court hears arguments in a case where a defense lawyer refused to follow the instructions of his client, who contended he was innocent. If the defendant is found not guilty, they are free to leave the court.The U.S. Talk with your Support Worker about any financial assistance that you may be able to receive to travel to court. You can attend the sentencing hearing if you would like to. The judge will consider any Victim Impact Statements, and formal reports on the victim and the sentences given in other similar cases. The sentencing hearing If the defendant is found guilty, they will need to appear at the sentencing hearing. If the jury cannot reach a decision, which is called a hung jury, another trial will need to be held. When the trial ends, the judge (for a judge-alone trial) or the jury (for a jury trial) must decide if the defendant is guilty or not guilty. If you've been called as a witness, you'll need to attend the trial to give your evidence. The trial A criminal trial can often be long, running for several weeks. The prosecutor or court victim advisor will tell you if you do, or you can tell them if you want to attend. You don’t usually need to attend the case review or jury trial callover. The defendant’s lawyer and the prosecutor will have separately filed a trial callover memorandum to tell the court some key details, such as the number of witnesses that will be called and if any pre-trial applications will be made. It deals with any procedural issues and makes sure the case is ready to proceed to trial. This is held at least 40 days after the case was adjourned for the callover. The registrar will then adjourn (postpone) the case until the trial date or, if it is to be a jury trial, until the jury trial callover is held.Ī judge conducts the jury trial callover. A court registrar usually handles the case review, rather than a judge. This is to decide if there is a need for a full trial. This tells the court all the details that relate to the case, and what the issues will be at the trial.Ī case review is held within 30 days of the not guilty plea. The defendant or their lawyer and the prosecutor must then jointly file a case management memorandum. There is a first hearing to formally hear the not guilty plea. You can attend both hearings if you wish to. At sentencing, the judge announces the defendant’s punishment. The case will go straight to a sentencing hearing without a trial being held. Where multiple charges have been laid, the defendant can plead guilty to some charges and not guilty to others. The defendant can plead guilty – meaning they accept the charges laid against them – or not guilty. The first hearing takes place to formally hear the defendant’s plea.
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