Superior Courts in Washington
State handle Felonies, not Gross Misdemeanors or Misdemeanors. There
are three classes of felonies in Washington State, Class "A", Class
"B", and Class "C". Class "A" is the most offensive type of felony,
Class "C" is the least offensive type of felony.
PRELIMINARY APPEARANCE FOR DETERMINATION OF PROBABLE CAUSE:
The primary purpose of the "First Appearance" and/or "Preliminary Hearing" is to determine whether there is probable cause to believe the defendant committed a criminal offense. If the defendant is being held for investigation and has not
been formally charged with a crime, the First Appearance before a
judge must be conducted with forty-eight (48) hours of the subject's
arrest, inclusive of weekends and/or holidays. Interestingly, the
appearance is usually conducted on a District Court Preliminary
Appearance Calendar; in King County the calendar begins each weekday at
2:30 PM (1:00 PM on Saturdays) at the King County Jail.
Superior Court Criminal Proceedures Preliminary Appearance
by Gregory Schwesinger on Mar. 20, 2014
Summary
Superior Courts in Washington State handle Felonies, not Gross Misdemeanors or Misdemeanors. There are three classes of felonies in Washington State, Class "A", Class "B", and Class "C". Class "A" is the most offensive type of felony, Class "C" is the least offensive type of felony.
