What happens in most cases if the appeal is successful and the court of appeals reverses the accuseds conviction?
When a higher court decides to reverse the trial court, the case typically becomes “remanded,” or sent back to the Superior Court for further proceedings. In most cases, what this means is that the defendant will receive a new trial or the prosecution may decide to dismiss the charges if the witnesses can no longer be found. In many cases, what may occur is that to avoid a new trial the prosecutor may make a “plea bargain” that is much more favorable to the accused than the sentence that had been previously imposed by the court.
