Criminal cases in the Massachusetts District Court system begin in one of two ways: an arrest , or a summons . A. Arrest.  In many cases, the criminal process is started by an arrest of the accused by police. What a person does in the course of the arrest, in terms of giving a statement to or otherwise cooperating with

A. Arraignment. Whether the criminal process is begun by an arrest or a summons, the procedure in court begins with the arraignment. The arraignment occurs on the first day the accused appears in court, and in the case of an arrest, is usually the next business day. The accused will be informed of what charges are alleged. Most courts will

There are a variety of reasons to seek to plea out a case. In some cases, the case is so strong, including a confession by the accused, leaving little alternative but to seek a plea. In other cases, however, there may be advantages to resolving a case short of trial because the deal is a good one that results in