The #1 Mistake People Make Before the Omnibus Hearing: Pleading Guilty
- Gad Law Offices
- Jul 12
- 2 min read
Updated: Aug 10
If you’ve been charged with a crime in Minnesota, one of the most important decisions you’ll face is whether to take a plea deal. Prosecutors often try to get you to plead guilty early—sometimes at your very first appearance. But here’s the truth: You should never plead guilty before your omnibus hearing.
So what Is an "Omnibus Hearing?" exactly?
The omnibus hearing is a critical stage in Minnesota criminal cases. It’s where your attorney reviews the evidence against you, raises constitutional challenges, and files pretrial motions to suppress evidence, dismiss charges, or limit what the jury sees.
In other words, it’s your first real opportunity to fight back.
Why Pleading Guilty Too Soon Is a Mistake
Pleading guilty before the omnibus hearing means giving up your rights before your lawyer has even reviewed:
Whether the traffic stop or search was lawful
Whether the State can prove its case
Whether your rights were violated
Whether key evidence can be suppressed
Whether witnesses are credible
Whether your arrest was even legal
Too many people plead guilty without ever knowing if the evidence would have held up in court. And unfortunately, too many defense lawyers go along with it just to move the case quickly. That’s not justice. That’s rubber-stamping a conviction.
The Power of Pretrial Motions
Pretrial motions are more than legal formalities—they're often the turning point in a case. Most defense attorneys will try to force you into the first plea. It's easy money for them.
At Gad & Gad Law Offices, we don’t just review the evidence. We dig into it. We file aggressive motions to:
Suppress illegally obtained evidence
Dismiss charges based on constitutional violations
Challenge the sufficiency of the complaint
Exclude prejudicial or irrelevant material
This is how we win cases. This is why we have one of the highest felony dismissal rates in Minnesota.
Make Your Lawyer Fight for You
If you're facing charges, ask your attorney:
“Have you reviewed the full discovery file?”
“Do you plan to file motions to suppress or dismiss?”
“Are we waiting for the omnibus hearing before making decisions?”
If the answer is vague—or worse, if you're being pressured to plead before your case is even fully investigated—you should think twice.
You get one chance to make a strong record. Once you plead guilty, there’s no going back.
We Don’t Plead People Out. We Fight.
📞 Facing charges? Don’t plead until we’ve seen the evidence.
At Gad & Gad, we treat every case like it’s going to trial—even if it doesn’t. That’s how we uncover the weaknesses in the State’s case. That’s how Attorney Sarah Gad get charges dismissed. And that’s why our clients walk out of court with their freedom intact.
Contact us today to schedule a consultation—and get the defense you actually deserve.
This is not legal advice. We are defense attorneys but not your attorneys.
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