What Should I Expect As A Witness In A Preliminary Hearing?

Question

Is it a courtroom thing or will I just speak with the prosecuting attorney? Will the suspects see me?

Answer 1

It depends upon the nature of the state's proceedings, but generally it WILL be in a courtoom; the suspects probably will see you; a defendant's attorney may cross examine you (if they believe that there's not "probable cause" to continue) ... but, the defendants might also waive the hearing to keep the process moving.

Call the prosecuting attorney, or anyone in the attorney's office; I'm guessing they have a standard spiel that they will tell you.

Answer 2

The law varies in the various states. In Wisconsin it is normally a public event which takes only a few minutes, but could last an hour. The judge or court comissioner, district or state attorney, the defense attorney, the defendant, and several witnesses (some of which may be police officers) may be present. The hearing may be somewhat informal, but everything will be controlled by the attorneys and the judge. Be honest in your answers, but do not volunteer any information in court that you are not asked to reveal. If you do not know the answer to a question, say, "I don't know".

Answer 3

You could liken a preliminary hearing (prelim) to a sort of mini-trial. The purpose of the prelim is to determine whether the state has enough probable cause to take the case to trial. Probable cause is needed in order to hold someone in custody pending trial.

The Defendant does have a right to confrontation, and he will be present along with a defense attorney who will be able to cross-examine the witnesses.

Answer 4

I think the suspets will see you, unless they decide to do away with the preliminary hrearing, and set a trial date.
Whatever you do make sure you say the truth, because if there are any differences, between your testimony in the prelim hearing and the trial, then you would be sitting on a very hot seat, and feeling very uncomfortable.