Then the defendant is scheduled for an arraignment hearing, where a plea is expected. In municipal court, defendants can plead guilty, not guilty or no-contest. If a person pleads guilty, a judge can sentence a defendant right away. If the plea is not guilty, a trial date is set. Most municipal court trials are decided by a judge.
Jury trials are rare and are only conducted at the request of a defendant.
The courtrooms of municipal judges are smaller than those of common pleas judges, said Hamilton County Court Administrator Mike Walton. In municipal court, the toughest misdemeanor charge carries a maximum penalty of six months in county jail. Those convicted of felonies, for the most part, go to state prisons. The only time a felony case appears in a municipal court is during a case's initial entry into the court system. Municipal judges preside over arraignments and determine preliminary bond amounts.