U.S. Courts, District of Idaho

Criminal Procedures

Magistrate Judge Authority

When specially designated to exercise such jurisdiction by the district court or courts s/he serves, any United States magistrate judge shall have jurisdiction to try persons accused of, and sentence persons convicted of, misdemeanors committed within that judicial district. Magistrate judges also have the authority to enter a sentence for persons convicted of a class A misdemeanor case when the parties have consented.

Any person charged with a misdemeanor, other than a petty offense may elect, however, to be tried before a district judge for the district in which the offense was committed.

A magistrate judge also may modify, revoke, or terminate supervised release of any person sentenced to a term of supervised release by a magistrate judge.

Procedual Orders

A procedural order based on a standardized form is entered at a defendant’s initial appearance by the magistrate judge.
Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, procedural orders are not entered in petty offense cases.
No scheduling conference is held.

Sealed Information

A request to seal must be made by motion and accompanied by supporting briefing and a proposed order.
Court will order sealing where appropriate.
At arraignments, if pretrial services reports are admitted as evidence, they are automatically sealed.
Financial affidavits are automatically sealed.

Plea Agreements

The Court will accept a plea at the time of a defendant’s initial appearance.
Further, the Court will consider a defendant’s request to change a plea at any time up to trial.
The District Judges often refer plea hearings to Magistrate Judges for entry of a Report and Recommendation.

Arraignments

The date and time for appearance for arraignment is coordinated through the courtroom deputy.
Counsel should arrive at the courthouse at least 30 minutes early and are expected to meet with their client prior to the hearing.
At an arraignment proceeding, the Court will consider (1) appointment of counsel, (2) the issue of detention, and (3) the entry of a procedural order.

Continuances

Upon good cause shown, first time continuances are granted as long as the continuance does not violate the Speedy Trial Act.
Requests for further continuances are examined closely.
The moving party should contact the courtroom deputy when requesting a continuance.

Oral Argument or Briefing

The moving party should contact the courtroom deputy for a hearing date and time, or to determine if oral argument is necessary.

Telephone and Video Conferences

The Court generally prefers not to discuss matters in criminal cases by telephone conference unless circumstances or time constraints do not allow for an in person hearing.
Some matters may be conducted via video conference.

Superseding Indictments

Defendants will be arraigned in person on a superseding indictment. As with initial arraignments, that appearance may be conducted by videoconference.
In some circumstances, Defendants will be allowed to waive arraignment.
The date and time for arraignments are arranged through the courtroom deputy.

Discovery

The Court prefers to rule on discovery motions after oral argument. However, rulings may also be issued solely on the briefs.
Some aspects of discovery are addressed in the procedural order.

Motions Practice

The deadline for filing of motions is set in the procedural order unless otherwise ordered by the Court.

Witness Disclosure

Disclosure must comply with the Federal Rules and applicable case law.
Witnesses should be disclosed in accordance with procedural order deadlines.

Presentence Report

The final report is sealed by the Court after sentencing. Disclosure is limited by Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure and Local Criminal Rule 32.1.
Counsel are provided with copies of all sentencing materials and recommendations provided to the Court by the Probation Office.
Objections to the presentence report must be in writing.
Motions for departure should be filed on or before the date objections are due.
In all Class A misdemeanor cases, pre-sentence reports are requested by the Magistrate Judges.
In Class B and C cases or petty offenses, the Magistrate Judge will generally request a bail report instead of a pre-sentence report.

Sentencing Memoranda

A sentencing memorandum is not required.
If submitted, a memorandum should be filed at least seven calendar days before the sentencing date.
In cases where the Court requires sentencing memoranda, a deadline for submission will be set.

Search Warrants, Complaints, and Pen Registers

The Assistant United States Attorney is required to contact all three courtroom deputies via email to schedule a date and time to present a search warrant, complaint, or pen register to a magistrate judge.