A criminal case in Burbank does not unfold evenly. Some stretches move fast and carry enormous consequences, such as the first hours after an arrest. Others feel like nothing is happening, even though some of the most important work is being done. Knowing which parts matter most helps you spend your attention where it counts.
What follows covers the process in the order it happens, but focuses on the moments that actually change outcomes and the five ways a case can end.
The Moment That Matters Most: Your Release Decision
The first major decision in many cases is whether you go home. If you were arrested and booked, release can happen through posting bail, being released on your own recognizance, or being cited out with a promise to appear. Each route carries different obligations, and how you are released can shape the rest of your case.
Staying in custody is not just uncomfortable. It can cost you a job, disrupt childcare, and put pressure on you to accept a quick plea just to leave. Defendants who are out of custody have more time, more resources, and more freedom to prepare. That is why a good defense attorney treats release as the first priority.
Bail amounts in Los Angeles County are not set in stone, and many lower-level offenses no longer require bail before arraignment. Judges consider the seriousness of the offense, your ties to the community, your record, your ability to pay, and the likelihood that you will return to court. When the amount is unrealistic for your situation, you may have options for reducing a Los Angeles bail amount through a motion that presents your circumstances to the court.
Release often comes with conditions, such as staying away from an alleged victim, surrendering firearms, or checking in regularly. Violating them can send you back into custody and damage the credibility of your defense, so read them closely.
What Happens Before You Ever Set Foot in Court
Even after release, a large share of the case occurs out of public view. The police report goes to a prosecutor, who reviews it and decides whether to file criminal charges in Burbank. Misdemeanors are handled by the Burbank City Attorney’s Office, while felonies go to the Los Angeles County District Attorney. That review can take days or weeks, and the charging decision it produces sets the limits for everything that follows.
This is the quiet period that many people waste. An attorney can use it to gather material the report does not contain: receipts, text messages, surveillance video from nearby businesses, and the names of witnesses who saw something different. In some cases, an attorney can also present this material to the prosecutor before charges are filed. Evidence is also perishable. Footage gets overwritten, memories fade, and phone data disappears, so early collection can make a difference.
Your first court date is the arraignment, which is usually listed on your citation or release paperwork. The arraignment itself is brief. The judge reads the charges, confirms your rights, and takes your plea, and most defendants plead not guilty so that nothing is decided before the evidence is examined. In many misdemeanor cases, your attorney can appear for you.
The Turning Point: What Discovery Reveals About Your Case
After the arraignment, the prosecution is required to share its evidence with the defense. This exchange is called discovery, and it is often the first time the defense sees the full file.
What arrives can change everything. Body camera footage may contradict the report. A witness statement may differ from what the officer wrote. Lab results may be incomplete, or a stop that looked routine may turn out to lack a legal basis. Seeing the discovery process in criminal cases laid out helps explain why reviewing this material carefully matters so much to the strategy that follows.
Discovery also tells you what the prosecution does not have. Missing evidence, a witness who has stopped cooperating, or a gap in the timeline can shift negotiations in your favor. Before discovery, much of the strategy is guesswork. After it, you are working from the actual case.
Five Ways a Burbank Case Can End
Criminal cases do not all end the same way, and the path from arrest to resolution can lead to very different results depending on the evidence, your history, and the choices made along the way. Because of this, the outcome you pursue should be chosen deliberately, with a clear understanding of your options and priorities, rather than left to drift toward whatever result the process happens to produce.
Dismissal
The prosecution may decide to drop the charge on its own, or a judge may dismiss it, often because the evidence is insufficient to prove the case, a key witness is unavailable or no longer willing to cooperate, or a successful motion removes the main proof the prosecution was relying on. A dismissal is often the best practical result a defendant can hope for, since it ends the case without a conviction, though it is not always available and depends heavily on the specific weaknesses in the prosecution’s case.
Diversion
Eligible defendants complete a program of classes, treatment, community service, or restitution, and the charge is dismissed afterward. It is most common for first-time, nonviolent offenses, though some programs, such as mental health diversion, can apply to more serious cases, and it can keep a conviction off the record entirely.
Negotiated Plea
In a negotiated plea, you agree to plead guilty or no contest to a charge, often a lesser one than what was originally filed, in exchange for a defined sentence that both sides have agreed to in advance. Most criminal cases end this way rather than at trial. A good plea agreement limits or avoids jail time, protects your driver’s license, professional license, or immigration status where possible, and removes the uncertainty of leaving your fate in the hands of a judge or jury.
Trial Verdict
At trial, a judge or jury hears the evidence and arguments from both sides and decides whether the prosecution has proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt, which is the highest standard of proof in the legal system. Going to trial carries both the greatest risk and the greatest possible reward of any outcome, since an acquittal ends the case completely and prevents the prosecution from trying you again for the same offense, while a conviction can bring a harsher sentence than you might have received through a negotiated deal.
Reduced Charge
A felony becomes a misdemeanor, or a misdemeanor becomes an infraction, usually through negotiation. Certain offenses called “wobblers” can also be reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor by court order, sometimes even after sentencing. Even without a dismissal, a reduction can change how a case affects your job, your record, and your future.
What Decides Which of Those Five You Get
Several factors determine which of these five outcomes is realistic in your case, and they do not all become visible at the same time. Some of them, such as your prior record or the nature of the charge, are clear from the very start, while others, such as weaknesses in the evidence or problems with how it was collected, emerge only after discovery, when the defense finally sees the full file the prosecution has built.
The strength of the evidence comes first. A case with solid video and a credible witness points toward a plea, while a case with gaps points toward dismissal or a better offer. Your record is next: a clean history opens the door to diversion and reductions, while prior convictions narrow the options.
The seriousness of the alleged harm matters as well. Cases with injuries or large losses attract firmer positions from prosecutors. Finally, local practice plays a role. Manshoory Law Group’s Burbank criminal defense attorneys handle cases in front of the same courts and prosecutors regularly, so they know which offers tend to be available and which are unrealistic.
Your own priorities count too. Some people care most about avoiding any jail time, others about protecting a professional license, and others about clearing their name at trial. A strategy that fits your goals is better than one chosen by default.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long until my case is actually resolved?
It varies with the charge and how contested it is. A simple misdemeanor can wrap up in a matter of weeks, while a contested case or a felony often takes many months. Motions, evidence testing, and court calendars all affect the pace, so a timeline is best treated as a range.
Can I get a resolution sealed later?
Often, yes. If your case ended in a dismissal, an acquittal, or completed diversion, you may be able to have the arrest record sealed. If you were convicted, a person who completes probation may be able to ask the court to set aside the conviction under Penal Code 1203.4, which updates the record to show a dismissal. This is not the same as erasing it, and some background checks may still show it, while some licensing applications require you to disclose it. Eligibility depends on the offense and how probation was completed.
What separates a dismissal from an acquittal?
An acquittal is a verdict of not guilty after trial, and it bars the prosecution from trying you again for the same offense. A dismissal ends the case without a verdict, and depending on how it is entered, the charge may sometimes be refiled. The distinction between a dismissal without prejudice and a final result matters when deciding what to do next.
Facing Charges in Burbank? Get a Free Case Analysis
Most of what shapes a criminal case happens in the first days and weeks, from the release decision to what the evidence shows. Starting early keeps more of your options open.
If you have been arrested or cited in Burbank, contact Manshoory Law Group for a free case analysis at (877) 977-7750. Available 24/7.