Frederick Cnty. Cir. Ct. Criminal DCM Plan 4

Order of Evaluation to the appropriate facility(ies).

Postponement Policy and Procedure

Pursuant to Md. Rule 16-105, all postponement requests must be considered by the County

Administrative Judge or designee. The designated postponement judge shall be authorized to make

good cause findings and to rule on waivers of the Hicks requirement. Pursuant to the Rule, only one

judge may be designated to have postponement authority at a time. This and the below information

is outlined in the Administrative Orders concerning the Postponement Policy for the Circuit Court for

Frederick County at:

https://www.mdcourts.gov/sites/default/files/import/clerks/frederick/pdfs/postponementofallot

hercases20220826.pdf

AND

https://www.mdcourts.gov/sites/default/files/import/clerks/frederick/pdfs/actingadminjudge202

20826.pdf

Specially Assigned Cases

Except as stated below, this limitation on postponement authority applies to all cases in the Circuit

Court, including cases that are specially assigned to a judge. The procedures for postponing specially

assigned cases are set forth below.

If the case is specially assigned, subsequent case management decisions and scheduling will be

initiated by the specially assigned judge consistent with the case time standards. However, pursuant

to Md. Rule 16-105, all postponements or scheduling that affects the trial date or the 180-day Hicks

period, must be made by the judge who is designated by the County Administrative Judge to rule on

postponements. The designated postponement judge will confer with the specially assigned judge for

a recommendation as to the postponement and to clear new court dates on the assigned judge’s

calendar. The scheduling or re-scheduling of all specially assigned cases must also be cleared in

advance with the Assignment Office and the Jury Office in order to ensure judicial and juror

availability.

VOP and Sentencing Hearings

These limitations do not apply to VOP, post-conviction, coram nobis, sentencing, or modification

hearings. In those matters, the judge to whom the case is assigned, may schedule and postpone them

in the judge’s discretion.

Clearing New Dates

Any party requesting a postponement of a trial or any other hearing shall coordinate a proposed re-set date with the opposing party and the Assignment Office consistent with case time standards.

Failure to coordinate a re-set date may result in the postponement being denied. Compliance with

this procedure does not guarantee that any postponement will be granted and will not be interpreted

by the Court as constituting consent to the postponement.

Same Day Postponements

Counsel requesting postponement of a case on the day it is set for trial or hearing shall bring it to the

Court’s attention at the beginning of the criminal docket and shall promptly be referred to the

Designated Postponement Judge for consideration. If the postponement request is denied, the case

shall be referred back to the criminal docket judge for further handling.

The above-mentioned procedure shall not apply to VOP, post-conviction, coram nobis, sentencing, or

modification hearings. In those cases, requests for postponement shall be made to the judge to whom

the case is assigned.

Hicks Issues

If the postponement of any event will, in any way, implicate the Hicks Rule, a Hicks waiver or finding

of good cause must be made in open court, by the designated postponement judge. The defendant

shall be present in open court and written waivers will not be accepted. If necessary, counsel may

coordinate a postponement/Hicks hearing with the chambers of the Criminal Case Management

Judge.

Plea Agreement Policy

Track 1 – Jury Demands and District Court Appeals

Jury Demands: The defendant may plead guilty before the administrative judge or the trial judge;

where a Pre-Trial Hearing may be scheduled, before the judge handling that docket. If a defendant is

already on probation before a Circuit Court judge, the defendant may seek leave to plead guilty

before and/or be sentenced by that judge.

Appeals: The defendant may plead guilty before the judge assigned to handle the Pre-Trial Hearing

docket or the judge assigned to the Trial Docket. If a defendant is already on probation before a

Circuit Court judge, the defendant may seek leave to plead guilty before and/or be sentenced by that

judge.

Tracks 2 and 3 – Felony Charges

Under the revised Criminal DCM Plan, plea agreements in cases designated Track 2 may be accepted

by any judge up to and including the Pre-Trial Conference date, which may be postponed once for the

purposes of reaching a plea agreement, or by the administrative judge on the Pre-Trial Conference

date. If the parties reach a plea agreement on the hearing date of a pretrial motion, the judge assigned

to hear that motion will take the plea. The parties may request that a case be scheduled for a plea at

any time prior to the scheduled trial date.

In Track 3 cases, a plea agreement may only be accepted by the specially assigned judge, who is

also the trial judge.

The sentencing date will be set before whichever judge accepted the plea agreement.

It is the County Administrative Judge’s policy that all pleas should be heard and disposed of prior to

the originally scheduled trial date. Trial dates will not be removed until the completion of the hearing

in which the plea agreement is executed. Trial dates may not be moved to accommodate a guilty plea

(without a finding of good cause by the administrative judge).