What is a Stet in Maryland and How is it Used?

A stet is a type of disposition that can bring a criminal case to an end, or almost to an end. It is usually a favorable disposition for a defendant.  If a prosecutor and defense attorney agree, they can ask the judge to place the case on a “stet docket” for a certain period of time or indefinitely.   This means that the case goes dormant or inactive.  There is no guilty plea; there is no admission of guilt; there is no finding of guilt; there is no conviction.    Any future court dates set in the case, such pretrial hearings, motions hearings, and trials will be removed from the court’s calendar.   

A stet is most often used when the prosecutor decides to exercise his or her discretion to not seek a guilty plea or a guilty finding in a case.  Instead, the prosecutor may be satisfied that the case can be placed on the stet docket with certain conditions that the defendant must perform during the stet period.     There is no limit to what conditions the parties may agree to, and the conditions will usually have some relevance to the original accusations.  The following is a list of possible conditions that are sometimes requirements of a stet disposition.

• Pay restitution to an alleged victim.
• Stay away from the alleged victim or other people during the stet period.
• Not return to a store, house or other location.
• Complete community service hours.
• Complete a specified class (alcohol counseling; drug counseling; parenting; gun safety, etc.)
• Write an essay about relevant law abiding behavior.
• Engage in mental health treatment.
• Write an apology.
• Obtain a relevant license (driver; home improvement; child care, massage, etc.)
• Get a diploma.
• Pay finds or plead guilty in a separate case.
• Incur no new criminal charges.

In some cases, a future court date will be set, often referred to as a “stet removal date.”  If the defendant completes the required conditions by the stet removal date, the case will be removed from the inactive docket, and set on a regular docket where a prosecutor will dismiss the case.   If the defendant has not satisfied the conditions, the case may be removed from the stet docket and set on a regular docket for a trial where the defendant may have to decide to either have a trial, or plead guilty to certain charges.

But a defendant should not rely alone on the prosecutor or the court to automatically remove a case from the stet docket and dismiss the case. If this action is not done, the stet may remain on the defendant’s record indefinitely. Any defendant with a stet should remember when the stet period expires, and communicate with an attorney to file a motion to have the case removed from the stet docket for the entry of a dismissal of the case.

While the case is on the stet docket, the case will remain on the defendant’s record.  Background checks may indicate that the case was placed on the stet docket.   As a general rule, a defendant may have to wait at least three years from the date of the stet, to file for an expungement of the case. 

Prosecutors or often reluctant to agree to a stet of a case because it has the effect of postponing a trial.  If the defendant does not complete the conditions of the stet agreement, the State can remove the case from the stet docket and set the matter in for a trial.   If certain witnesses are no longer available, or interested in cooperating with the prosecution, it may be difficult for the State to get a guilty verdict.  Therefore, if the case involves several witnesses and many pieces of evidence, a prosecutor may be less interested in placing a case on the stet docket.

A stet is also often used for cases that are resolved with a guilty plea in the District Court.  For example, a defendant may enter a plea of guilty to a DUI in District Court.    As a condition of the plea agreement, the State may agree to not prosecute several other citations that were issued in the case.   If the defendant does not receive a sentence he or she thinks or fair, the defendant may appeal the case to the Circuit Court for a de novo appeal.  A de novo appeal means that the case starts all over again, as if there was no plea in the District Court.  If the State had dismissed those other citations in the District Court as part of the plea agreement, the State would have to refile the dismissed charges in the Circuit Court, and serve the defendant with those charges, something that requires a good deal of administrative work. If the State, however, stetted those other charges in the District Court, once the case is appealed to the Circuit Court, the State can simply make a motion to remove those other charges from the stet docket.  The case will then be restored to its original posture, to how it existed originally, with all the charges being available for prosecution. There is nothing improper about this procedure. In the District Court, the defendant or the defense attorney negotiated to have certain charges dismissed or stetted (not prosecuted) in exchange for a guilty plea to other charges. If the defendant appeals, he or she is effectively undoing his guilty plea, and therefore, not honoring the original agreement. Please note, this procedure does NOT apply to appeals from criminal cases that are prosecuted in the Circuit Court.

In Maryland, the operation of a stet is guided by Rule 4-248 which provides:

(a) Disposition by stet. — On motion of the State’s Attorney, the court may indefinitely postpone trial of a charge by marking the charge “stet” on the docket. The defendant need not be present when a charge is stetted but if neither the defendant nor the defendant’s attorney is present, the clerk shall send notice of the stet to the defendant, if the defendant’s whereabouts are known, and to the defendant’s attorney of record. Notice shall not be sent if either the defendant or the defendant’s attorney was present in court when the charge was stetted. If notice is required, the clerk may send one notice that lists all of the charges that were stetted. A charge may not be stetted over the objection of the defendant. A stetted charge may be rescheduled for trial at the request of either party within one year and thereafter only by order of court for good cause shown.

(b) Effect of stet. — When a charge is stetted, the court shall order the clerk to take the action necessary to recall or revoke any outstanding warrant or detainer that could lead to the arrest or detention of the defendant because of the charge, unless the court orders that any warrant or detainer shall remain outstanding.

This article was published in November 2024.