What is another term for indictment?

What is another word for indictment?
charge allegation
accusation arraignment
impeachment summons
prosecution citation
complaint count

What is a synonym and antonym for indictment?

noun. ( ˌɪnˈdaɪtmənt) A formal document written for a prosecuting attorney charging a person with some offense. Antonyms. linger absolve calm overcharge discharge unburden empty. murder charge legal instrument true bill charge murder indictment.

What does indictment word mean?

1 : a formal written statement framed by a prosecuting authority and found by a jury (such as a grand jury) charging a person with an offense. 2a : the action or the legal process of indicting. b : the state of being indicted. 3 : an expression of strong disapproval an indictment of government policy on immigrants.

What is the base word of indictment?

Its base word, indict, comes from the Latin indīctus, a form of the verb indīcere, meaning “to announce” or “to proclaim.” An indictment is a formal announcement officially accusing someone of a crime.

What is self indictment?

1 preoccupation with oneself to the exclusion of others or the outside world.

Which word has the meaning decline?

deterioration, downturn, drop, failure, fall, recession, slump, weakening, decrease, dip, drop-off, loss, slide, deny, dismiss, refuse, reject, depreciate, deteriorate, diminish.

Does indicted mean guilty?

“Indicted” is a scary word. Whenever anyone flips on the news and hears that someone has been indicted by a grand jury, it sounds like serious business. However, the term simply refers to a procedure in the legal process — a procedure that does not, in fact, indicate someone’s guilt or innocence.

What is the difference between an indictment and an arraignment?

Arraignment – the defendant is brought to court and formally charged with the crime he/she is accused of. Bail is set or the defendant is released. Bail – set at arraignment. … Indictment – the defendant is formally charged with the crime.

What is the difference between being charged and being indicted?

“Being charged” with a crime means the prosecutor filed charges. An indictment means the grand jury filed charges against the defendant. Regardless of how the state moves forth with filing charges, the results are the same for the defendant: an arrest and formal charges.

Does being indicted mean you go to jail?

Does Indictment Mean Jail Time? An indictment does not mean a person is going to jail. It simply means that the prosecution may proceed with filing criminal charges. At that point, a court trial will be scheduled to begin and the process of trying the case before a judge and jury will commence.

Can charges be dropped after indictment?

A charge can be dropped before or after a charge has been filed. You may need a charge dropped by the prosecutor, or you may need a charge dismissed by the prosecutor, though a court also can dismiss a charge if the prosecutor has made a fundamental legal error in the case.

Can you bond out after being indicted?

If a defendant is out on bail when he is indicted, unless he has violated the terms of the bail, it will most likely be continued over by the court; meaning that the defendant does not have to pay bail again to remain out of jail. … If not, then the judge will look at the defendant’s criminal history.

What does warrant on indictment mean?

The court must issue a warrant—or at the government’s request, a summons—for each defendant named in an indictment or named in an information if one or more affidavits accompanying the information establish probable cause to believe that an offense has been committed and that the defendant committed it. … (1) Warrant.

What happens after being indicted?

Following an indictment, the accused party is formally charged with the crime. If he has yet to be arrested, he may be arrested and then charged. In most jurisdictions, the accused party attends a pretrial hearing and has the opportunity to enter a plea.

How serious is an indictment?

A federal criminal indictment is a serious matter, because it means that the criminal investigation has progressed to a point where the prosecutor now believes that he or she has enough evidence to convict.

Is an indictment the same as a warrant?

Indictments and warrants are two different things; an indictment is a formal charge filed with the court that begins the process of a criminal trial, whereas a warrant is an order issued by the court authorizing something to be done, such as a search or an arrest.

What is a federal indictment?

An indictment is a formal criminal charge against an individual or entity handed up by a Grand Jury. A grand jury is a group of 23 citizens who are gathered by a federal court to hear preliminary evidence to determine if there is enough proof that a particular individual or company committed a Federal crime.

Can charges be dropped at an arraignment hearing?

It is rare for charges to get dismissed at an arraignment. Criminal charges generally do not get dismissed at an arraignment. While prosecutors can dismiss a charge if there is a compelling reason to do so (for instance if they learn that a defendant was wrongly charged), in practice, they rarely do this.

What procedure is often used as an alternative to the grand jury?

The modern trend is to use an adversarial preliminary hearing before a trial court judge, rather than grand jury, in the screening role of determining whether there is evidence establishing probable cause that a defendant committed a serious felony before that defendant is required to go to trial and risk a conviction …

What are the differences between a grand jury and a petit jury?

Answer: A Petit jury is the trial jury for both civil and criminal cases. … A Grand jury does not appear in trial, but listens to evidence presented by an attorney for the government and determines from the evidence if sufficient probable cause exists for bringing formal criminal charges against an individual.

How do you convince a prosecutor to drop charges?

There are several ways for criminal defendants to convince a prosecutor to drop their charges. They can present exculpatory evidence, complete a pretrial diversion program, agree to testify against another defendant, take a plea deal, or show that their rights were violated by the police.

How can charges be dropped before court date?

How Criminal Charges Get Dismissed
  1. Prosecutors. After the police arrest you, the prosecutor charges you with a criminal offense. …
  2. Judge. The judge can also dismiss the charges against you. …
  3. Pretrial Diversion. …
  4. Deferred Entry of Judgment. …
  5. Suppression of Evidence. …
  6. Legally Defective Arrest. …
  7. Exculpatory Evidence.

Do I need a lawyer for an arraignment?

At your arraignment, the judge will advice you of your Constitutional rights, including the right to be represented by an attorney. While you do not necessarily need to have an attorney present at your arraignment, having one can be important in several ways.

What evidence do the police need to charge you?

The evidence they gather includes documentary, physical, photographic and other forensic evidence and not just witness testimony. The police arrest and interview suspects. All of this produces a file which when complete the police send to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) for review and a decision on prosecuting.