My Case is Dismissed? Is My Case Over?
It depends. While your retained attorney has completed his scope of representation once the case is dismissed, you may not be "free and clear" of future legal problems involving the same facts. A dismissal in criminal court is a decision of a court prior to trial or before a verdict is reached that terminates the proceedings against the defendant. The procedure by which dismissals in state and federal criminal actions are obtained are governed by the state and federal rules of criminal procedure.
Speedy Trial
In criminal prosecutions, delay often prejudices the defendant's rights because of the greater likelihood that evidence would be lost or memories or events would not be recalled easily. This is why speedy trial deadlines exist where a defendant must be brought to trial by a certain date. Certain statutory factors exist than can toll the days that would otherwise count against the speedy trial deadline. Continuances requested by the defendant, for example, cause speedy trial time to be tolled. The possibility of dismissal ensures the prompt government prosecution of individuals accused of committing crimes. The legal effect of a dismissal in a criminal prosecution is dependent upon the type that is granted by the court.
Dismissal With Prejudice
A dismissal with prejudice bars the government from prosecuting the accused on the same charge, or for other criminal charges based on the same facts, at a later date. The defendant cannot subsequently be reindicted or charged because of the constitutional guarantee against double jeopardy. A dismissal with prejudice is made in response to a motion to the court by the defendant or by the court sua sponte, when the court addresses an issue without the litigants presenting the issue for consideration to the court. An example of a case being dismissed with prejudice is when the government intentionally withholds exclupatory evidence from the defendant. The Kansas Supreme Court has suggested caution should be used in dismissing a criminal charge with prejudice, and it should be exercised only in cases where no other remedy would protect against abuse.
Dismissal Without Prejudice
A case that is dismissed without prejudice means the government has dropped the case for now, but still have the right to bring it back. A dismissal without prejudice that permits the reindictment or retrial of a defendant on the same charge at a subsequent date may be granted by a court acting sua sponte or after the prosecuting attorney has made a motion to do so. Only nonconstitutional grounds that do not adversely affect the rights of the defendant, such as the crowding of court calendars or when the government is not ready to proceed at trial due to witnesses it believed were necessary to prove the charges not being present, might be sufficient to warrant the dismissal of a criminal action without prejudice.
Motion by a Defendant or Sua Sponte
A defendant may file and argue a motion to the court to have the charges against the defendant dismissed with prejudice due to the delay violating the individual's constitutional right to a speedy trial or there is no sufficient evidence to support the charges. In deciding whether a delay is unreasonable, the court evaluates the extent of the delay, the reasons for it, the prejudice to the defendant, and the defendant's contribution to the delay. A court with jurisdiction to decide criminal matters can sua sponte dismiss a criminal prosecution with prejudice if the facts of the case clearly established that an accused has been deprived of his or her constitutional rights.
A defendant may want to look into expungement of his or her criminal arrest record when the case is dismissed with or without prejudice to erase any public notice that the defendant was ever prosecuted for the charge. The cases on the Notable Cases page that were dismissed were either dismissed with prejudice, or dismissed without prejudice and never refiled.
