What To Expect From A Malicious Wounding Case in Culpeper

Accused of malicious wounding in Culpeper County? Here is what you can expect according to a Culpeper malicious wounding lawyer. Call today to schedule a free consultation and discuss your case in more detail.

What a person can expect in a malicious wounding case is that the charge will be prosecuted very vigorously. If an unlawful wounding charge has been made, then in most cases that means that someone has been significantly injured and that either a grand jury or a magistrate judge at least have already found probable cause to believe that the accused is the cause of these injuries and that they were inflicted with the intent, in most cases, to either to kill or to disfigure.

As in any case where there is an upset or hurt victim, the Commonwealth is more likely to take the case to trial or offer very severe terms in the plea agreement than they might be in other cases. A person should expect that they will need to have competent counsel in the case, that the matter will need to be investigated thoroughly to discover what evidence there is, including statements of the victim, statements of the accused, witnesses to the events, in many cases video or audio evidence, and other forms of physical evidence which may tend to place the events in context and also bring out facts which are favorable to the accused.

But in every case they should anticipate that they must treat it very seriously because the penalties are very serious and can result in life-altering amounts of incarceration if one is found guilty.

Where Are Malicious Wounding Cases Heard?

Malicious wounding cases are all ultimately heard by the Culpeper County Circuit Court. If a person is charged with malicious wounding by indictment directly from a grand jury, then the entirety of their case will take place in the Circuit Court in Culpeper County.

If, however, they are arrested on a warrant that was issued by a magistrate judge, then the case will begin in the General District Court where a preliminary hearing will be heard and the judge will determine whether there is probable cause for the case to continue to the Circuit Court. If he finds there is, then the matter is tried in the Circuit Court. If he does not, then often the case is dismissed.

In cases where the accused or the victim are juvenile or where the victim is a family member, the case will begin in the Culpeper County Juvenile and Domestic Relations General District Court where a preliminary hearing will be had to determine if there’s probable cause for the case to go forward, and if the judge finds that there is, then the case is ultimately sent to Circuit Court to trial.