The felony case process in Washoe County: from arrest to trial

Felony prosecutions in Washoe County begin in justice court — Reno Justice Court or Sparks Justice Court, depending on where the offense is charged. At the initial appearance on the criminal complaint, the defendant is advised of the charges and of the right to counsel, and the court takes up custody status.

Bail and pretrial release in Nevada are governed by NRS Chapter 178. The chapter frames the questions the justice court works through: whether release is available, on what conditions, and what showing supports the custody position each side takes. The specific standards and mechanics are set by the statutory text and by the case law applying it, and they are applied case by case — the posture of an in-custody defendant at the first appearance is one of the points where early engagement of counsel has the most practical effect.

A felony charge reaches district court by one of two routes. The first is the preliminary examination in justice court under NRS 171.196: a defendant in custody is entitled to a preliminary examination within 15 days unless the hearing is waived or continued for good cause, and at the hearing the State must show probable cause to bind the case over to district court. The second is a grand jury indictment under NRS Chapter 172, in which the State presents its evidence to a grand jury rather than to a justice of the peace.

For the defense, the preliminary hearing is usually the first evidentiary test of the State’s case. Witnesses testify under oath and are subject to cross-examination, and the transcript becomes part of the record the case carries forward. A defense that is preparing for trial from the outset treats the preliminary hearing accordingly — the examination of the State’s witnesses there is not a formality but an early piece of the trial record.

After bindover or indictment, the case proceeds in the Second Judicial District Court of Nevada — the district court for Washoe County, sitting in Reno. Where the case arrived by bindover, the State files an information; charging by information is governed by NRS Chapter 173. At arraignment in district court the defendant enters a plea to the charging document, and the court sets the schedule that will govern motions, discovery deadlines, and trial.

Pretrial procedure in district court — motion practice, discovery, and the mechanics that carry a felony case toward trial — is governed by NRS Chapter 174. This is the phase in which the defense record is largely built: motions to suppress evidence, motions addressing the charging document, discovery demands and disputes, and evidentiary motions that frame what the jury will and will not hear.

The sequencing matters. Motions decided before trial shape the trial itself, and a motion record made carelessly is difficult to repair later. This is one reason the timing of engagement matters in serious felony cases: the earlier trial counsel is engaged, the more the trial strategy can shape the preliminary-hearing and motion record, rather than inheriting a record built without a trial plan behind it.

Trial procedure in Nevada — jury selection, the order of proof, instructions, deliberation, and verdict — is governed by NRS Chapter 175. A Washoe County felony trial is conducted in the Second Judicial District Court before a jury drawn from the county, and the trial record made there is the record on which any appeal will rest.

Not every felony case reaches a verdict. Cases resolve at every stage of the process described here, and resolutions are negotiated against the backdrop of the trial each side expects. A defense that is visibly prepared to try the case changes that calculus — which is why preparation for trial begins at engagement, not at the final calendar call.

Mr. McKenna’s criminal defense practice is based in Reno and is limited to serious felonies — first-degree murder, capital murder, sexual assault, federal criminal matters, and complex felony prosecutions. The practice does not accept DUI cases, misdemeanors, or routine criminal matters. The overview of that practice, including the courts in which it is conducted, is set out on the criminal-defense practice page; for capital matters specifically, the SCR 250 practice note in this series describes the counsel-qualification framework that applies when the death penalty is sought.

This reference describes the general framework at the chapter level. Procedure varies with the case, the court, and the charging decisions the State makes, and the current text of the statutes and rules controls over any summary of them. Nothing here is legal advice about a particular matter; the posture of a specific case can be assessed only in consultation.