California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Otis, F075975 (Cal. App. 2019):
Penal Code section 1382 requires dismissal if a felony case has not been brought to trial within the prescribed time limit "unless good cause to the contrary is shown," the defendant enters a general waiver of the 60-day trial requirement, or the defendant requests or consents to a trial setting beyond the 60-day window. Section 1050 also provides that a trial court may grant continuances "only upon a showing of good cause." ( 1050, subd. (e).) Neither section 1050 nor section 1382 defines "good cause." Rather, "the determination of whether good cause for a continuance has been shown is typically made by the trial court in the exercise of its discretion based on the totality of the circumstances." (Burgos v. Superior Court (2012) 206 Cal.App.4th 817, 827.)
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"[N]umerous California appellate decisions that have reviewed good-cause determinations under this statute demonstrate that, in general, a number of factors are relevant to a determination of good cause: (1) the nature and strength of the justification for the delay, (2) the duration of the delay, and (3) the prejudice to either the defendant or the prosecution that is likely to result from the delay." (People v. Sutton (2010) 48 Cal.4th 533, 546.) "The cases recognize that, as a general matter, a trial court 'has broad discretion to determine whether good cause exists to grant a continuance of the trial' [citations], and that, in reviewing a trial court's good-cause determination, an appellate court applies an 'abuse of discretion' standard." (Id. at p. 546.)
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