3.33 - VIII. Disposition Of The Case At Arraignment

• Jurisdiction: New York

VIII. DISPOSITION OF THE CASE
AT ARRAIGNMENT

Depending on the customary practice and procedure of the locality, plea bargaining⁴⁹² may occur during the arraignment proceeding. Frequently, a prosecutor who has decided not to seek an indictment will offer favorable terms to the defendant at this first stage of the prosecution of the case to encourage a non-felony guilty plea disposition, which would prevent the case from further burdening already congested court calendars.

At an arraignment proceeding conducted in a local criminal court, there are statutory and constitutional restrictions on the court’s authority to accept a defendant’s plea of guilty. Because the superior court has exclusive trial jurisdiction over felonies⁴⁹³ (e.g., a local criminal court cannot accept a guilty plea to a felony charge), with regard to felony charges, the local criminal court’s jurisdiction is limited to conducting the arraignment on the felony complaint and to conducting the preliminary hearing.⁴⁹⁴

In some counties, felony...