Charlottesville, VA asked in Criminal Law for Virginia

Q: i was charged witb posession of a firearm by a convicted felon. the PROSECUTOR ASKED THAT THE CHARGE BE DISMISSED.

the charge was dismissed. but now the same prosecutor has asked the grand jury to incict and they are. can they do this?

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1 Lawyer Answer

A: It depends. If the prosecutor moved to nolle prosequi the charge then that is a dismissal without prejudice. Which means they can bring the charge back. And typically when they do its through a direct indictment in Circuit Court. Prosecutors will do this for a variety of reasons, mostly tactical. There are also dismissals with prejudice which means the prosecutor could not bring it back.

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