If you or someone you love is facing criminal charges in Michigan, the court process runs through two courts before a felony is ever tried, with a series of scheduled steps that can feel like the case is always pending but never moving. I have been through the system myself, and most of the fear comes from not knowing what each step is for. So let me walk you through the Michigan criminal court process one stage at a time, in plain language. None of this is legal advice, and every case and county is different, so treat it as a map and lean on a lawyer for the turns.
Start with how Michigan organizes its courts. District Courts handle misdemeanor cases from start to finish and serve as the entry point for felony cases. Circuit Courts are the trial courts of general jurisdiction where felony cases are actually tried. Above the trial courts sits the Michigan Court of Appeals, the intermediate appellate court, and at the top the Michigan Supreme Court. A felony case starts in district court and moves to circuit court after a probable cause determination.
Step one: arrest and booking
It begins with arrest and booking, where the charges are recorded, fingerprints and a photo are taken, and the jail runs its checks. The People of the State of Michigan, represented by the county prosecuting attorney, bring the case. The accused is the defendant, and the defense attorney represents them. After arrest, a magistrate may issue an arrest warrant or, in cases of warrantless arrest, a probable cause determination is made to authorize continued detention.
Step two: the district court arraignment
After arrest, the defendant is arraigned in district court. At the arraignment the court informs the defendant of the charges and possible penalties, advises them of their rights, and addresses bail. The arraignment in Michigan has an important difference for felony defendants: they do not enter a plea here. For felony charges, no plea is taken at the district court arraignment. The defendant is told the charges, the matter of bail is addressed, and a future date is set for the probable cause conference.
Step three: the probable cause conference
Within seven to fourteen days after the district court arraignment, the defendant appears for a probable cause conference. This is a meeting between the prosecuting attorney and the defense attorney, sometimes before a judge, where both sides discuss the case and explore whether it can be resolved before trial. The defendant may have the opportunity to negotiate a plea agreement at this stage, and the prosecution may present or adjust any offer. If the matter is not resolved, the case moves to the next step.
Step four: the preliminary examination
The preliminary examination, often called the prelim, is scheduled within five to seven days after the probable cause conference and generally no later than twenty-one days after the arraignment. At the preliminary examination a district court judge reviews the evidence. The prosecution must show that a felony has been committed and that there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed it. The standard is lower than proof beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. The defense can cross-examine witnesses, and this is one of the early opportunities to test the State's evidence in a live proceeding.
If the judge finds probable cause, the defendant is bound over to circuit court. If the judge does not find probable cause, the felony charges can be dismissed, though the judge may also reduce charges to a misdemeanor or bind the case over on different charges. The defendant can waive the preliminary examination, and most felony cases in Michigan arrive in circuit court this way, often because waiving accelerates the process or is part of a negotiated arrangement. If the defendant waives the preliminary examination, the case goes directly to circuit court.
Step five: circuit court arraignment, information, and the stand mute option
Once bound over or after a waiver, the defendant is arraigned in circuit court. The formal charging document filed in circuit court is called an Information. At the circuit court arraignment the defendant is again advised of the charges and rights and enters a plea. Here there is a Michigan-specific option: the defendant can stand mute instead of entering a formal plea. If the defendant stands mute, the court enters a not guilty plea on their behalf, and the case proceeds exactly as if a not guilty plea had been entered. Standing mute is sometimes a tactical choice, preserving options while avoiding the formality of entering an explicit plea. Most defendants plead not guilty or stand mute at this stage, which keeps every right open and forces the prosecution to prove its case.
Step six: pretrial conference, discovery, and motions
After the circuit court arraignment, the case enters the pretrial phase. A pretrial conference is scheduled between the judge, the prosecutor, and the defense attorney to set the schedule, discuss the evidence, and explore resolution. Discovery is exchanged, including police reports, lab results, recordings, and witness lists. The defense can file pretrial motions, such as a motion to suppress evidence obtained through an unlawful search, and a granted suppression motion can gut the prosecution's case. Final pretrial hearings give the defense one last chance to accept a plea before trial.
Step seven: plea bargaining and the Cobbs agreement
Most Michigan felony cases are resolved by plea. During the pretrial period the prosecuting attorney and the defense discuss whether a negotiated resolution makes sense. Michigan has a distinctive tool worth understanding: the Cobbs agreement. In a Cobbs agreement, the judge makes a preliminary evaluation of the likely sentence before the defendant enters a plea. The defendant can then decide whether to plead guilty with the knowledge of the expected sentence. If the judge later imposes a harsher sentence than indicated, the defendant has the right to withdraw the plea and go to trial. A Cobbs agreement gives the defendant more certainty about what a plea will actually mean, which makes it one of the most practically useful tools in the Michigan system. Whether to accept a plea or pursue a Cobbs agreement is entirely the defendant's decision. A good lawyer lays out the real risks and the real options.
Step eight: trial
If the case does not resolve, it goes to trial in circuit court. A felony defendant has the right to a jury of twelve, or can waive that right and be tried by the judge alone. Misdemeanor trials in district court use a jury of six. Trial moves through jury selection, then opening statements, the prosecution's case, the defense's case, closing arguments, and the verdict. The verdict must be unanimous. Throughout, the burden stays on the People to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The defendant does not have to prove innocence and does not have to testify.
Step nine: sentencing and Michigan's advisory guidelines
If there is a guilty verdict or plea, the case moves to sentencing. In Michigan a presentence investigation report is prepared before sentencing. The report gives the judge detailed information about the defendant's background, criminal record, employment, and circumstances.
Michigan has a sentencing guidelines system that calculates a recommended minimum sentence range for each felony. The guidelines score the offense based on factors related to the crime and the defendant's prior record, producing a minimum sentence range. Until 2015 those guidelines were mandatory. In People v. Lockridge, decided in 2015, the Michigan Supreme Court held that mandatory application of the guidelines violated the Sixth Amendment right to jury trial and made the guidelines advisory. After Lockridge, judges are still required to calculate the guidelines range and take it into account, but they are no longer bound to sentence within it. A judge who departs from the guidelines must justify the sentence for appellate review, and departures are evaluated for reasonableness. In practice the guidelines carry significant weight even though they are technically advisory.
Step ten: appeals
A conviction is not always the end of the road. Felony appeals go to the Michigan Court of Appeals, the intermediate appellate court, which reviews the written record for legal errors that affected the outcome. Misdemeanor appeals go to the circuit court for the county. An appeal is not a new trial. From the Court of Appeals, a case may go to the Michigan Supreme Court, which takes cases at its discretion. Deadlines are strict and begin running quickly after sentencing, so anyone considering an appeal needs to tell their lawyer right away.
A cursory look at the federal court process in Michigan
Everything above describes the Michigan state court system, which handles the overwhelming majority of criminal cases. Some cases, though, are charged as federal crimes and move through an entirely separate system worth understanding in outline.
Michigan is divided into two federal trial districts. The Eastern District of Michigan is based in Detroit at the Theodore Levin United States Courthouse, with additional court locations in Ann Arbor, Bay City, Flint, and Port Huron, and it covers 34 counties in the southeastern and central portions of the state. The Western District of Michigan is based in Grand Rapids, with court also held in Lansing, Kalamazoo, and Marquette, and it covers the remaining counties including the entire Upper Peninsula. A federal case in Michigan is prosecuted by the United States Attorney's Office for whichever district the case sits in, not by a county prosecuting attorney, and it is heard by federal judges in those courthouses.
The federal sequence covers the same broad ground you read about above but with its own rules and players. After a federal arrest, the defendant has an initial appearance before a United States magistrate judge, with detention or release decided under the federal Bail Reform Act rather than Michigan's bail rules. There is no probable cause conference or preliminary examination in the federal sequence. Felony charges are brought by indictment from a federal grand jury. The case proceeds through arraignment, discovery and motions, and either a plea or a trial in United States District Court. There is no Cobbs agreement in federal court. Federal sentences are calculated under the United States Sentencing Guidelines, which function more bindingly than Michigan's advisory guidelines and often carry mandatory minimums; sentences are served in federal prison, and there is no parole in the federal system.
If a federal case in Michigan ends in conviction and is appealed, it does not go to the Michigan Court of Appeals or the Michigan Supreme Court. It goes to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, based in Cincinnati at the Potter A. Stewart United States Courthouse, which also covers Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. From there the only further step is the United States Supreme Court. Because federal practice is its own world, anyone facing a federal charge in Michigan should make sure their lawyer has real federal court experience.
Where this leaves you
The Michigan court process is long, and the two-court structure, the district court probable cause conference and preliminary examination and the circuit court arraignment and pretrial, is one of the most disorienting things for families. But each stage has a purpose, and knowing the sequence, district court arraignment, probable cause conference, preliminary examination, circuit court arraignment, pretrial, plea or trial, sentencing, and appeal, lets you see where your person is instead of feeling lost in it. Get a lawyer involved as early as you can, keep one page with the charges, the court, the next date, and your attorney's contact information, and stay close to your loved one through it. The system is built to make people feel alone. Knowing the map is how you push back against that.
Discovery Offer - Silos 1-2
Search arrest records and find out where they are
If you're trying to locate someone who was arrested or find out where they are being held, TruthFinder searches arrest records, court records, and custody status across all 50 states.