In a criminal case, the state, through a prosecutor, initiates the suit, while in a civil case the victim brings the suit. Persons convicted of a crime may be incarcerated, fined, or both. Criminal defense attorneys represent clients who have been accused of committing a crime, and defend their rights at each stage of a misdemeanor or felony case -- from an arrest to an appeal after conviction. Criminal defense attorneys may be hired privately or provided by the government (called "public defenders").
Bluemont is an unincorporated village in Loudoun County, Virginia located at the base of Snickers Gap in the Blue Ridge Mountain. At 680 feet (210 m), it is the highest community in Loudoun County. Originally named Snickersville, Bluemont changed its name to attract Washingtonians out to it when a predecessor of the Washington and Old Dominion Railroad was extended to the town from Round Hill. It is located on Virginia Route 7 just west of the incorporated town of Round Hill. Every fall it is home to the Bluemont Fair. A nearby landmark is Mount Weather, an operations and training facility above ground for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and is rumored to contain an underground facility designed to house or replace the American government in the case of nuclear warfare.