In AZ can the court move on to arraignment if your attorney requested a prelim hearing?

Question

Attorney is stating that even though prelim was requested, probable cause was established via grand jury indictment. This is great attorney, i have had him for years, but for some reason i don't get the good feeling i normally do.

Answer 1

Yes -- the court can determine that an indictment from grand jury is sufficient, and that no additional preliminary hearing is required before arraignment.

The preliminary hearing is just one step -- there are many more ways to attack the indictment later during the process, well before trial.

Losing one motion does not mean the attorney is bad.

Answer 2

It sounds like either your attorney failed to file the request in time or the DA chose to take it to a Grand Jury.

Read this:

Preliminary Hearing
A Preliminary Hearing is a court hearing before a Justice of the Peace (JP). The prosecutor, but usually not the defense, presents witnesses and evidence at the Preliminary Hearing. The JP’s job is to decide if there is enough evidence to show two things which together are called Probable Cause:

1) That a crime probably happened, and
2) That the accused probably committed the crime.

Less evidence is needed at the Preliminary Hearing than would be needed at trial. If the JP finds no Probable Cause on either of these two points, the complaint will be dismissed. (NOTE: There is a chance a dismissed charge may be re-filed.) If the JP finds Probable Cause exists to believe the defendant is guilty of the offenses charged, a charging document called an Information is filed and the case will be sent to Superior Court for Arraignment.

Preliminary Hearings are sometimes “scratched” or “vacated”. This means that the complaint rges were not filed in time, or that the prosecutor has chosen to take the case to the Grand Jury. Scratched or vacated charges may be re-filed.

A defendant may waive the Preliminary Hearing if he, his attorney and the prosecutor reach a plea agreement. Then the case will not go to trial and will instead be set for a Change of Plea proceeding at Arraignment. Sentencing will be pronounced approximately one month after the Change of Plea proceeding. Misdemeanor sentencings usually occur in Justice Court. Felony sentencings always occur in Superior Court.

It's from
http://www.co.yuma.az.us/LD/criminalcase.htm