Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal
court ruling to defer the disposition of a defendant's case
In criminal procedure, an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal (ACD or ACOD) allows a court to defer the disposition of a defendant's case, with the potential that the defendant's charge will be dismissed if the defendant does not engage in additional criminal conduct or other acts prohibited by the court as a condition of the ACD. The defendant subject to the adjournment in contemplation of dismissal is restored to the status he or she occupied prior to arrest, either during or after the period of adjournment that accompanies the ACD: that is, all records of the arrest and after the period for which the ACD applies; however, in many jurisdictions a local law enforcement record of the arrest is retained by default, unless that record is explicitly expunged.
The judge adjourning in contemplation of dismissal may impose specific conditions on the defendant subject to the ACD, which may include community service, drug rehabilitation, making restitution with a victim of the circumstances, avoiding contact with the victim, or completing some other diversion program. It may also be accompanied by an admonition to abstain from wanton, injurious, criminal, abusive or disruptive behavior. On the acceptance of the ACD and its without disposition and the defendant is released without bail condition.
Application and surrounding process
The burden of proof in the court systems which employ the system of ACD rests with the people (that is, the prosecution). If evidence demonstrating guilt is not presented, the matter is deemed dismissed, and the ACD proceeds along its standard course of action.
United States
In United States criminal law, adjournment in contemplation of dismissal may be offered to a defendant in the interest of justice with a view toward ultimate dismissal of the charge. When available, and granted to a defendant, the judge normally adjourns the case for a period time, often in the range of six months to a year, after which time the case will be dismissed as long as the defendant has stayed out of trouble (i.e., has not been arrested again). In most jurisdictions an ACOD is not classified as a form of probation, and if successfully completed the defendant does not receive a conviction.
Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal may be called by different names in other states.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal” is court ruling to defer the disposition of a defendant's case. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Adjournment, contemplation and dismissal, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “court ruling to defer the disposition of a defendant's case” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Feb 14, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q4683175. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
Overview language is designed for orientation and should not be treated as a substitute for the evidence cited beneath it. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal primary sources, Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal archive and Adjournment research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal”?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Adjournment in contemplation of dismissal” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.