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Your Bakersfield Criminal Defense Attorney
California law sets real filing windows for criminal charges, scaled by offense severity, with select serious crimes falling outside that system entirely. California’s Superior Courts, one per county since the 1998 trial-court unification, are where these cases are actually filed, a detail covered further down this page.
What Happens After a California Arrest
What happens after a California arrest depends heavily on the offense class involved, from arraignment and the bail decision through to how the case is ultimately resolved.
When California Can and Can't File Charges
Penal Code §799 removes the deadline entirely for the most serious offenses; §800 sets 6 years for felonies carrying 8 or more years; §801 sets 3 years for other felonies; §802 sets 1 year for misdemeanors. Child abuse cases get a 5-year deadline under §801.6, separate from the general felony/misdemeanor tiers.
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Cash Bail, Prop 25, and What Changed
California voters rejected Senate Bill 10’s attempt to abolish cash bail statewide via Proposition 25 in November 2020, so cash bail technically remains the law. But the California Supreme Court’s 2021 ruling in In re Humphrey changed how bail actually gets set: a court must now inquire into a defendant’s ability to pay before imposing cash bail, and must consider less restrictive non-monetary conditions first.
California's Three Strikes Law and Sentencing Exposure
A wobbler reduced to a misdemeanor under § 17(b) generally stops counting as a felony going forward, with one real exception: a serious or violent felony still counts as a strike even after reduction. California’s Three Strikes law (Penal Code § 667) doesn’t make a first or second strike an automatic life sentence, but it does double the exposure on any later felony, and a third serious or violent strike can trigger a mandatory 25-years-to-life sentence.
What a California DUI Charge Actually Involves
California charges DUI under Vehicle Code § 23152, and penalties escalate sharply based on how many prior DUI convictions fall within a rolling 10-year lookback window, not a lifetime count. Beyond the fines and jail exposure, a DUI program requirement (3-9 months for a first offense, 18-30 months for a second) and license suspension both scale directly with how many priors fall inside the 10-year window.
What Happens To a California Record Later
Even after a § 1203.4 dismissal, certain licensing boards and government agencies can still see and consider the underlying conviction, a real limit worth knowing about upfront. As of the Clean Slate Act’s October 2024 full effective date, many arrest records, dismissed cases, and older felony convictions (four-plus years out) get sealed automatically; serious or violent felonies and registerable sex offenses are excluded from that automatic process.
What Bakersfield Residents Should Know
The same statewide rules apply to a case connected to Bakersfield the same way they apply anywhere else in California: the same tiered filing deadlines, the same right to counsel, the same bail and sentencing framework.
Speak With a Bakersfield Criminal Defense Attorney
With California’s filing deadlines, bail rules, and sentencing framework all in play, an attorney familiar with Bakersfield and the surrounding courts can help make sure nothing gets missed. Fill out the form on this page to get connected with a criminal defense attorney who can review the details of your situation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a wobbler charge get the felony or misdemeanor filing deadline?
The felony deadline: a wobbler always runs on the longer felony filing window, even if it’s ultimately charged or resolved as a misdemeanor. California’s Superior Court, unified statewide since 1998, has jurisdiction over criminal matters regardless of which filing-deadline tier applies.
Will I automatically be released on bail in California?
No, it’s not automatic; the California Supreme Court’s In re Humphrey decision (2021) requires a court to weigh ability to pay and consider non-monetary conditions before imposing cash bail. None of this changes the state’s separate deadline for filing the underlying charge.
How far back does California look for prior DUIs?
California uses a rolling 10-year lookback window: only prior DUIs within that window count toward escalating a new charge’s penalties. These penalty tiers are set by statute and don’t vary from one California county to another.
Do I need to file anything for Clean Slate Act sealing?
For records covered by the automatic process, no; the DOJ reviews and seals qualifying records on a monthly cycle, and a § 1203.4 petition is still the path for records the automatic process doesn’t reach. Neither expungement route erases a record entirely; both change how it can be reported or accessed, not its existence.
Where would my Bakersfield criminal case be filed?
Criminal cases connected to Bakersfield are generally filed in the Superior Court of California, County of Kern, California’s single-tier trial court for the county.
Fewer Legal Hurdles Doesn't Mean There's No Rush
California’s tiered filing deadlines don’t change what a defense connected to Bakersfield still needs: a clear-eyed look at the charge, the evidence, and how release conditions are actually being handled. A wobbler’s ultimate classification isn’t decided instantly, and the groundwork that shapes it benefits from an early start, not a rushed one.
