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Criminal Appeals

Representation on Appeal of Criminal Conviction

Generally, an appeal is a vehicle for challenging a conviction at trial. In the Georgia Court of Appeals, the appeal is heard by three entirely new judges. In the Georgia Supreme Court, nine Justices hear the appeal. In federal cases tried in Georgia, Florida and Alabama, three judges in the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals will hear the appeal. 

The defendant, having been found guilty, will assert in the appeal that the trial was unfair for a variety of reasons: The prosecutor was permitted to introduce evidence that was inadmissible (such as hearsay); the defense was prohibited from introducing evidence that should have been admitted; the defendant’s Fourth Amendment rights to be free from an illegal search or seizure were violated and the trial judge did not correctly decide this issue in the trial court; the evidence at trial was not sufficient to support the conviction, notwithstanding the decision of the jury; the defendant’s trial counsel was either incompetent, or made a significant mistake at trial, or in preparing for trial and locating favorable witnesses. These are just a sample of the types of errors that can support a successful appeal.

With limited exceptions, a successful appeal does not end the case entirely. Rather, in most cases, the appellate court (the Georgia Court of Appeals, or the Georgia Supreme Court, or the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals) will send the case back to the trial court to conduct a new trial but without the error that led to the reversal of the conviction. Nevertheless, often, when a case is sent back to the trial court, the prosecutor will not be interested in trying the case again and may offer a far more lenient plea bargain to be done with the case.

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When you hire the law firm of Garland, Samuel & Loeb, you can rely on us to do everything in our power to reach the best possible outcome in your case. Whether you have suffered a serious injury in an accident or are facing criminal charges, our attorneys will fight to see that your rights are protected from the start.