Some people think of criminal appeals as essentially a chance to try the case again. Maybe they were convicted and found guilty of the alleged crimes. They would like another chance to go through the trial again and see if they can get a result that is more preferable.
But this is not the right way to view an appeal. It is not a new court case or a new trial. It doesn’t give the defendant another chance to get a “better” result. In fact, in most cases, an appeal isn’t even going to involve new witnesses, new evidence or anything of this nature. The court is simply going to be looking at the same evidence once again.
Why would someone appeal?
The reason to appeal is often to say that a mistake was made in the original ruling. It’s not about presenting new evidence, for example, but about claiming that the evidence was interpreted incorrectly. Someone may appeal because they don’t think the evidence supports the guilty verdict, even if they’re not disputing that the evidence exists.
Appeals will also often focus on mistakes made regarding how the law was applied. For instance, someone may think that a judge made a mistake in claiming that there was a mandatory minimum sentence when there actually is not. They may appeal because they feel that the law itself was applied incorrectly to their case, regardless of their own guilt or innocence.
This shows you how to think about an appeal and what goals you should have if you’re going through one. Be sure you also take the time to look into the necessary legal steps.