Tag: Tanza Loudenback

An indictment is a document that notifies the defendant of the charges against them. It is the beginning of the formal criminal process, says Daniel Richman, a former federal prosecutor and now the Paul J. Kellner Professor of Law at Columbia Law School.Under the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution, those accused of a crime must “be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation,” while the Fifth Amendment prohibits federal law enforcement officials from beginning prosecution of defendants accused of “a capital or otherwise infamous crime.” A grand jury must decide if a defendant should face prosecution for those serious crimes. Therefore, a grand jury indictment is part of how constitutional protections are met within the American justice system.While an indictment begins the process...