Domestic Violence
Family Court Monitoring Project
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
- Arraignment and Plea (A & P):
- Court proceeding during which defendant is called upon to plead to the charge against him.
- Bench Trial:
- A trial held before a judge sitting without a jury
- Bench Warrant:
- Process issued by the court for arrest of a person.
- Complaining Witness:
- Person who is the alleged victim.
- Compliance:
- Obedience; conformance.
- Case:
- A judicial proceeding.
- Calendar Call:
- A Court session to call the cases awaiting trial for that week to determine the present status of each case.
- Continued:
- To adjourn or postpone a session, hearing, trial or other proceeding to a subsequent day or time.
- Concurrent:
- Running together; contemporaneous.
- Count:
- A separate and independent claim.
- Consecutive:
- When one sentence of confinement is to follow another in point of time
- Credit Time Served (CTS):
- Defendants sometimes have spent time in jail prior to their A & P, especially if they were arrested on a Friday night or during the weekend. The "next available court day" will not be until after the weekend, and if the defendants cannot make bail, they stay in jail. Thus if the defendant pleads or is found guilty, and receives a jail sentence, he is usually given credit for the time he has already spent in jail. In some other cases, credit for time served is given to defendants who are currently in jail on other charges.
- Defendant:
- The accused in a criminal case.
- Deferred Acceptance of Guilt (DAG):
- A procedure where a defendant pleads guilty to the charge but the plea is not accepted by the judge until an investigation, similar to a pre-sentence investigation and report, is completed. The judge can then accept the plea or place the defendant on DAG status. If the defendant complies with the terms and conditions of the DAG, the charge against him is dismissed. Usually reserved for youth, and first time offenders.
- Deferred Acceptance of No Contest (DANC):
- Same as DAG, only applied to a no contest plea.
- Disposition:
- The sentencing or other final settlement of a criminal case.
- Dismissed With Prejudice:
- An adjudication on the merits and final disposition barring the right to reindicted a defendant on the same claim or cause.
- Dismissed Without Prejudice:
- Dismissal without prejudice to the right of the state to reindict the defendant.
- Domestic Violence Control Counseling (DVCC):
- A course for offenders mandated by the court to teach responsibility for one's actions and to learn not to use violence.
- First Degree Assault:
- A Class B felony defined in HRS Section 707-710 as intentional or knowingly causing serious bodily injury to another person.
- Harassment:
- A person commits the offense of harassment if, with intent to harass, annoy, or alarm or cause bodily injury to another person, he or she strikes, shoves, kicks, stalks, insults, taunts or communicates with that person. Harassment is a petty misdemeanor defined in the Hawaii Revised Statute Section 711-1106.
- Hearing:
- A proceeding, generally public, with definite issues of fact or law to be tried.
- Jury Trial:
- Trial of a matter or cause before a jury. Such right is guaranteed with respect to criminal cases by Article III, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution, in all criminal prosecutions except for petty offenses.
- Motion:
- Application made to a Court or Judge for purpose of obtaining a rule or order directing some act be done in favor of the applicant.
- No Contest (Nolo Contendere):
- Plea in a criminal case which has a similar legal effect as pleading guilty; type of plea which may be entered with leave of Court to a criminal complaint or indictment, by which the defendant does not admit or deny the charges. A fine or sentence may be imposed pursuant to it. Principal difference between plea of guilty and plea of no contest is that no contest may not be used against the defendant in a civil action based upon the same acts.
- Plea:
- The defendant's response to a criminal charge.
- Plea Bargain:
- Agreement by counsel which may or may not be approved by the court.
- Pled as Charged (PAC):
- Pled as charged, either guilty or no contest, means that the defendant acknowledges the charges as read and (guilty) admits that he did do those crimes, or (no contest) agrees to the charges as read but does not admit guilt.
- Pled to a Lesser Charge (PLC):
- Upon agreement between the defendant, his attorney, and the Prosecuting Attorney, a lesser charge may be specified for a plea. In charges under HRS Section 709-906, the lesser charges are usually HRS Section 707-712, Assault in the 3rd Degree or HRS Section 707-7011, Harassment.
- Probation:
- Sentence in which the person convicted of a crime is subject to the supervision of a probation officer. (Differs from parole in that it does not follow early release from prison but is often a substitute for prison sentence.)
- Proof of Compliance (POC):
- A defendant must demonstrate to the court he has complied with the conditions of a sentence.
- Second Degree Assault:
- A Class C felony defined in HRS Section 707-711 as (A) intentionally or knowingly causing substantial bodily injury to another; (B) recklessly causing serious bodily injury to another person; (C) intentionally or knowingly causing bodily injury to a correctional worker who is engaged in the performance of duty or who is within a correctional facility; (D) intentionally or knowingly causing bodily injury to another person with a dangerous instrument; or (E) intentionally or knowingly causing bodily injury to an educational worker who is engaged in the performance of duty or is within an educational facility.
- Sentencing:
- Post-conviction stage of criminal justice process, in which defendant is brought before court for imposition of sentence.
- Substance Abuse Testing (SAT):
- Orders for defendants to be tested for drug or alcohol abuse by an approved agency.
- Suspect:
- A person reputed or suspected to be involved in a crime.
- Third Degree Assault:
- Intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly, causing bodily injury to another person or negligently causing bodily injury to another person with a dangerous instrument defined in HRS Section 707-712. Assault in the third degree is a misdemeanor unless committed in a fight or scuffle entered into by mutual consent, in which case it is a petty misdemeanor.
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