Frequently Asked Questions

Most of our clients need our help in one of the following:

• Criminal Defense: Defense of both indigent adults and minors who are charged with a crime. We also defend someone accused of violating probation and/or parole.
• Guardianship or Conservatorship: Some people are not mentally able to represent themselves in legal matters, such as in court or for forced medical treatment. Our attorneys can represent them and help protect their rights.
• We do not represent people charged with “infractions”, like traffic tickets. These are not crimes.

This depends upon your income, assets, expenses, and type(s) of charges. During your first court appearance you can apply. You will fill out a financial information sheet (we call it “the green sheet”). That will help us decide if you qualify for our services. By statute, our office may only represent those persons accused of crimes who cannot afford to hire their own attorney. Representation for guardianship or conservatorship matters is based upon statute.

There will be a Public Defender in court for you on your first court date. Usually that attorney will not be your permanent Public Defender. It takes a few days for your case to be assigned to your personal Public Defender.

With a few exceptions, no appeal can be filed until after you have been sentenced. There are no appeals from a deferred entry of judgment. A plea of Guilty or No Contest waives most appellate issues, except those relating to search and seizure and some sentencing issues. Appeals are most often filed after a trial.

An appeal is a claim that the superior court judge made an error of law that affected the outcome of your case. Many trial court errors are viewed as harmless and your appeal can be denied on that basis.

Frivolous appeals should not be filed and, sometimes, things can get worse after an appeal, particularly in felony cases. You may be asked to reimburse the government for the fees paid to your appellate lawyer. You should seek advice about appeal from the attorney who represented you at your trial or sentencing.

With a timely request, the Public Defender will file your notice of appeal or provide you with a form to do it yourself. Often, the appellate court will appoint another lawyer, who will contact you as needed.

30 days after sentencing in a misdemeanor case and 60 days after sentencing in felony cases. If you decide to file the Notice of Appeal close to the deadline, you should file it yourself. You can get a form from the Clerk of the Superior Court or download a form here: http://tiny.cc/0uqq9

Appeals often take six to eighteen months for a decision. An appeal does not postpone the terms of your sentence.

The lawyers on both sides will file briefs and any other pleadings that are necessary and may present oral argument to a panel of three judges. At least two of the judges must agree about the outcome and they will write an opinion explaining their decision.

All infractions are automatically eligible. Some non-violent misdemeanors can be eligible with DA approval. *Parking tickets are NOT eligible for Homeless Court

Yes! If fees and fines owed to the Court are causing a DMV hold, participating in homeless court can get the hold lifted. Unfortunately, can’t use Homeless Court hours to pay fines and fees owed to the DMV directly; those need to be paid to the DMV.

No! Homeless Court is for persons who are homeless, at imminent risk of being homeless, and all indigent individuals.

Yes! The treatment and community service hours provided by the program can be used to clear some fines/fees.

Yes! There is no limitation on the amount of eligible fines and fees that can be cleared in Homeless Court. If you owe thousands of dollars, you can still benefit from Homeless Court. The more you owe, the more community service and treatment hours you will need to clear those fines.

Unfortunately, no. We can only clear monies owed on Ventura County cases. We suggest contacting the county where the incident occurred and asking if they have a similar program or another option.

No! The Homeless Court Program key players (judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and homeless shelters and service agencies) agree, “No one goes into custody against their will.” This agreement respects the relationship and trust the homeless-service agencies hold with the participants who appear before the Homeless Court program, and it acknowledges that time spent working with these agencies is equivalent to, and more constructive than, time spent in custody.

No, but after homeless court you can file an expungement, which can take the conviction off your record. Stand alone Misdemeanor expungements should be filed by the individual themselves. Instructions on how to file your expungement can be found at:
https://vcpublicdefender.org/misdemeanor-expungements/

For assistance with FELONY expungements please visit:
https://vcpublicdefender.org/felony-expungement/

Homeless court is currently held VIA Zoom and subject to change in the near future.

Contact our Homeless Court at Pdparalegals@ventura.org to discuss the process and requirements.

An expungement is when you file a document with the court and you ask the Judge to remove your guilty plea and dismiss your case.

There are specific requirements which you must complete before you are eligible for an expungement

If you are a public defender client, speak as soon as possible with the attorney who represented you at trial or sentencing. If you still have additional questions, call (805) 654-2201.