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Getting a New Trial After Winning a Federal Appeal
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Getting a New Trial After Winning a Federal Appeal
Winning a federal appeal is a major accomplishment, but it doesn’t always mean the case is over. In some situations, winning the appeal simply results in the higher court sending the case back down for a new trial. This article will explain when and why courts order new trials after appeal victories.
Why Courts Sometimes Order New Trials After Appeals
There’s a few main reasons why appellate courts send cases back down for new trials instead of just declaring the defendant not guilty when they win on appeal:
- The appellate court found a serious enough error in the original trial to undermine the verdict, but there’s still enough evidence to potentially convict at a fairly conducted trial.
- The appellate court issues a new interpretation of the law that the trial court should apply on retrial.
- The appellate court overturns the conviction on one count but leaves other convictions in place.
In the first situation, the appellate court is saying that while there was enough evidence presented at the original trial for a properly instructed jury to potentially convict, there was some significant error that corrupted the verdict. Common examples are improperly excluding defense evidence, allowing in prejudicial evidence that should have been excluded, or giving improper jury instructions. The appellate court can’t declare the defendant not guilty because there’s enough evidence that a jury could still convict if the trial was done right. But the conviction has to be vacated because the original trial was unfair.
In the second scenario, the appellate court issues a new ruling on the meaning of a law that the trial court didn’t apply. The appellate court overturns the conviction and sends it back for the trial judge to apply the correct law. For example, if the appellate court interprets a criminal statute more narrowly than the trial judge did, it might vacate the conviction so the defendant can be retried under the proper interpretation of the law.
Lastly, multi-count convictions can be upheld on some charges but vacated on others based on the specific appellate issues. Say a defendant was convicted of both robbery and assault, but the appellate court finds the assault conviction improper. They can uphold the robbery while vacating the assault, meaning the defendant still has to face retrial on any remaining valid convictions.
Getting Acquitted at the Retrial
Winning a federal appeal and getting a new trial is a huge victory. But defendants want to actually get acquitted at the retrial, not just run the whole gauntlet again. There’s a few ways the retrial can increase the odds of an acquittal:
- The prosecution’s evidence is weaker the second time around. Witnesses might recant or change their stories. Physical evidence might get suppressed or discredited.
- The defense can alter their trial strategy based on what went wrong the first trial.
- The defendant has already seen the prosecution’s whole case, allowing for more effective cross-examination of witnesses.
- Prosecutors sometimes make plea offers after appeal victories, even offering to dismiss the charges entirely in some cases.
The passage of time itself can weaken the prosecution’s case if witnesses become unavailable or their memories fade. And the prosecution likely won’t have the benefit of surprise at the retrial the way they did in the original trial. Skillful defense attorneys can use the knowledge gained from the first trial to pick the prosecution’s case apart when they get a second swing at it.
Courts are also wary of letting prosecutions take multiple attempts at conviction after the defense has won on appeal. Judges might be more inclined to toss cases they feel should have ended after the appellate victory. And if plea negotiations happen, prosecutors may just want to end the case rather than keep fighting uphill battles.
Using the Appellate Ruling Strategically
Smart defense lawyers will try to use the appellate ruling to their advantage at the retrial. For example, if the conviction was overturned due to improperly admitted evidence at the first trial, they can be sure to get that evidence excluded for the retrial. Or if the appellate court rejected the prosecution’s interpretation of a statute, the defense can use that narrower interpretation to knock out charges or defeat the prosecution’s theory of the case.
The appellate ruling provides a roadmap telling the defense what arguments and strategies worked on appeal. By relying on the reasoning in the appellate decision, the defense might be able to obtain favorable rulings from the trial judge and undercut the prosecution’s game plan. Prosecutors will try to minimize the impact of the appellate decision, but the defense can wield it to gain every advantage.
Fighting Uphill Battles on Retrial
Of course, winning a retrial is never easy for defendants. Prosecutors have huge advantages in resources and trial experience. The government can also appeal pro-defense rulings by the trial judge before or during the retrial. And they usually have strong motivation to save face by getting a conviction after losing on appeal.
If the appellate court only overturned the conviction on narrow grounds, the prosecution still has its basic theory and evidence intact. They may be able to remedy the specific flaws the appellate court identified without much difficulty. Unless the appellate ruling completely gutted the state’s case, they often have the pieces to put together another credible prosecution.
It’s an uphill fight on retrial, especially if the defendant already lost once before. But with effective lawyering and some luck, winning that first appeal can be parlayed into an outright acquittal. It’s a long road, but every victory along the way brings defendants closer to getting their freedom back for good.
The Mechanics of Getting a Retrial
If the appellate court orders a new trial, they send a mandate back to the trial court indicating the conviction has been vacated and directing a retrial on the remaining valid charges. The trial court will set a new trial date, often months in the future, and sort out any pretrial issues like bail in the interim. Defendants usually remain imprisoned unless they get released on bail pending retrial.
Both sides will then begin preparing for the retrial as if it’s a brand new trial. Pretrial investigation, motions, jury selection, and all the usual trial procedures start over again. Both sides will try to learn from the results of the first trial to guide their strategy for the retrial. It’s a fresh start procedurally, but the history of the case still casts a long shadow.
If the retrial ends in an acquittal on all counts, the defendant walks free and the case is closed for good. The prosecution doesn’t get a third try after losing twice. But if the retrial ends in re-conviction, the defendant can start the whole appellate and retrial process over again by filing a new appeal. The cycle continues until either the defendant is acquitted or runs out of appellate options.
Conclusion
Winning a federal appeal and getting a retrial is a huge accomplishment, but still only half the battle. Skillful defense lawyers can use the appellate victory to gain advantages at the retrial and increase the odds of an acquittal. But prosecutors usually come back just as determined to secure re-conviction. With strong advocacy and some luck, however, defendants can parlay their appellate win into a permanent victory. The retrial is a golden opportunity to undo the injustice suffered at the first trial.