Misdemeanor Lawyer in Scottsdale, AZ

When Scottsdale Police write a misdemeanor, the City Attorney's Prosecution Division normally prosecutes it. The division's list runs from domestic violence, assault and disorderly conduct to threats and intimidation, theft, DUI and other traffic crimes, city ordinance violations and certain juvenile offenses. Scottsdale City Court hears those cases at 3700 N. 75th St., on weekdays between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. (the first and third Wednesdays start at 8:30 a.m.).

Some misdemeanors land elsewhere. A DPS or Sheriff's Office citation, or an incident just past the city line, can go to a county justice court instead. McDowell Mountain Justice Court's listed area includes Scottsdale, and it shares 18380 N. 40th St. with other justice courts, so read the court's name rather than the address. A city report can also be referred to the County Attorney for felony review, which would move the case downtown.

After Scottsdale Police book someone on a city charge, that person may be held in the jail at the Downtown Scottsdale Police Station, which shares the court's address and is entered from the Civic Center Library garage's second level. The department sets jail court for 9 a.m. to noon, adjusting with the day's number of initial appearances, and the City Attorney's annual report says city prosecutors cover jail court, so the State can have a lawyer at that hearing even when the defendant does not. Rule 4.1 sets the outer limit at 24 hours after arrest. DPS and Sheriff's Office misdemeanor arrests take another path; the Superior Court's Initial Appearance Court lists them among the people it serves.

Most Scottsdale misdemeanors start with no booking. On a citation, the court says, the first court date and time appear at the bottom. Other cases start as a report the officer forwards to the city prosecutor, asking for a long-form complaint; the prosecutor then decides whether to charge, and a summons may follow weeks later. Until then there is no charge, and that interval is often a good time to bring in a lawyer.

Do not assume the court will appoint you a lawyer. Arizona Rule of Criminal Procedure 6.1(b) entitles an indigent defendant to appointed counsel in a proceeding that may result in punishment by loss of liberty. In misdemeanor court, the prosecutor can avow that no jail will be requested and the judge can rule that no jail will be imposed, and once that happens, there is no right to appointed counsel at all. Arizona's Court of Appeals upheld exactly that in Campa v. Fleming, 134 Ariz. 330 (App. 1982).

The court's own page puts it more practically: a public defender is available when the case qualifies, for instance when the prosecutor wants jail, and when the defendant qualifies financially. The request can be made at the arraignment or at a pretrial conference.

Avoiding jail is not the same as avoiding a conviction. A guilty or no contest plea at City Court can be followed by sentencing right away, and a fine on a criminal charge still counts as a conviction. The record can come up on background checks for jobs, housing and licenses, some misdemeanor convictions can count as priors later, and a non-citizen can face immigration questions. A DV designation adds required treatment on conviction and can affect firearm rights.

Two Scottsdale requests have their own rules. Police reports come from the Prosecution Division only for defendants or attorneys on open cases, by email to [email protected]; anyone else asks the police department. Jail video is time-sensitive: the division wants a written request inside 30 days of the arrest, after which the footage may be gone.