Criminal Appeals in Las Vegas

Las Vegas Criminal Appeal Lawyers

After your jury trial, you may be sitting there wondering whether there’s any hope left. There may have been moments in your trial where the judge disagreed with your attorney, or maybe the jury arrived at a completely unreasonable verdict. Whatever the issue may be, Nevada allows for criminal appeals to challenge the trial court’s findings.

However, Nevada appeals are governed by the Nevada Rules of Appellate procedures, and you will need an experienced attorney to help you avoid the common pitfalls, including, but not limited to, untimely and improperly filed appeals, permanently waiving arguments in your future case, etc. For example, the Nevada Rules of Appellate procedure requires that a notice of appeal be filed no later than “30 days after” the written entry of judgment. Elsewhere in the same rules, such notices of appeal are the only thing for which an attorney may not request an extension of time, showing how just a simple mistake of one day can harm your chances of getting the relief you seek. Just missing the deadline by one day can include not only penalties and fines for your attorney, but more importantly, may lead to the dismissal of your appeal, regardless of the merits of your arguments.

After a jury trial returns a verdict of guilty, and a judgment of conviction is filed, the clock starts on filing the criminal appeal in the higher courts. During this time, your attorney can request transcripts from the trial and all previous proceedings to begin preparing your appeal. Some common appealable issues in some cases include:

• Whether the jury returned an unreasonable verdict, not in line with the instructed law
• Whether the judge improperly overruled an objection by your attorney
• Whether a judge improperly ruled on a motion to exclude evidence by your attorney
• Whether the jury pool was fair and selected in a racially non-discriminatory way
• Whether the State and the Court followed all procedures required, including not veering into prosecutorial misconduct
• And whether the sentence was unjustifiably harsh

Depending on the issue appealed, the higher court may order a new trial for your matter, or, in certain cases, the rule may be that the case can be dismissed with prejudice, meaning that the case is invalid, dismissed, and the state may not initiate another trial against you for the same charges.

Once your notice of appeal is filed, the Court will return a schedule to your attorney to file his initial brief, arguing your appeal. Depending on the strength of the arguments (among other factors), the Court may set your matter for oral argument in front of judges, where your attorney can further argue the facts alleged in your appeal. However, this can be a lengthy process, taking several months at a minimum.

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