In the process of an indictment, you will find the term ‘dismiss or superseded’. However, many people still do not know what the term ‘dismiss’ means. If you have a plan to work in law, you surely need to understand this term.
Thankfully, this post will show you what the dismiss or superseded means by indictment. So, if you’re looking for the information about it, you can dive into our post below to find out the information about it. Here you go!
The Meaning of Dismiss/ Superseded by Indictment
The term ‘dismiss or superseded’ means the complaint for preliminary hearing has been dismissed, since the case has been indicted by the grand jury. Moreover, the original complaint was replaced with an indictment. So, the charges now come in the form of an indictment.
Your charges are dismissed which is until an indictment is issued together with a WFA or Warrant for Arrest. In this case, WFA will then indicate a True Bill of Indictment has been returned, pointing law enforcement to find you and take you to jail.
What is the Difference Between an Indictment and a Criminal Complaint?
Both an indictment and a complaint refer to court pleadings which start a criminal case against someone. But, the main difference between them centers on how they originate. It is known that an arrest alone does not indicate the beginning of a criminal case. In fact, an arrest will probably not happen until much later in the process.
Basically, the police forward an arrest report to the prosecutor. The prosecutor will then determine whether to pursue criminal charges or not. Depending on the laws in the state, a prosecutor will commonly perform this in one of two ways.
In some states and federal systems, the law asks prosecutors to enter charges to the grand jury system. Then, those charges will take the form of an indictment. In other states, the prosecutor submits a criminal complaint directly against the defendant.
In this case, the relevant law will determine which option the prosecutor should use, even though the prosecutor will be able to choose whether to file a complaint or go before a grand jury to pursue an indictment.
How Does an Indictment Work?
An indictment works to reveal a formal accusation based upon available evidence that an individual has committed a serious crime. Then, they will be indicted, if there is enough evidence to prove that a person committed a crime.
It’s important to note, indictments are that they are not asked for every single crime. Moreover, indictments are only required for felonies who will be heard by federal courts on a federal level.
In this case, states are not prompted to indict every individual who they believe has violated the law. It is known that a lot of states have passed laws which prompt an indictment to charge someone with a felony crime, including New York, Massachusetts, Texas and Ohio.
The most confusing part is that an indictment will be able to come at very different parts of the trial process. Some jurisdictions will pursue an indictment prior to putting someone under arrest, while others place someone under arrest and then deliver the case out for indictment. Then, most of the time, an individual will identify that police will be interested in them for a crime. That is commonly not something which takes someone by surprise.
The institution who runs an indictment is a grand jury, working to decide whether or not the state has enough evidence to charge someone with a crime applied in all but two states. Grand jury is called by the prosecutor who checks all available evidence in a case. Certainly, they will make a decision whether or not there is enough evidence on hand to prove that an individual committed a serious crime.
Grand juries will be chosen in a couple of different ways, depending on the jurisdiction. Well, some jurisdictions’ grand juries are chosen through invitation. It means that you need to know someone to sit on a grand jury.
Other jurisdictions’ grand jury selection actually operate much like a standard jury selection. Well, it is completely random and of course all potential jurors will be interviewed to ensure they are not biased and have the capacity to serve.
What Happens After Indictment?
As we’ve mentioned, an indictment provides notice of the criminal charges against an individual. Once a grand jury actually indicts someone, it will return the indictment to the court and the criminal case starts.
If the suspect or now defendant is not already in custody (jail), the defendant is probably arrested or summoned to appear before the court for preliminary hearings. Then, the case will proceed to trial within a set time frame that can vary depending on the jurisdiction.
In federal court, the time period takes around 70 days, but the states have varying timelines for it. The trial should occur within that time frame until the defendant selects to waive his or her right to a speedy trial or accepts a plea deal.
If you are encountering charges based on a grand jury’s indictment, it’s better for you to talk to a criminal defense lawyer immediately about your rights and the criminal process. The decisions that have been made early in the process may have a big impact on the final outcome of the case.
Read also: How Long After Indictment Does Arraignment Happen?
Get to Know the Meaning of the Dismissed to Grand Jury
A dismissal to the Grand Jury regards to a case that was being sent to a Wake County criminal Grand Jury to review the charges. Need to know, grand juries will meet in private, which is a highly secretive process.
It is known that the state in North Carolina probably dismiss criminal charges to understand that they probably request the Grand Jury to review the matter. In this case, a dismissal to the grand jury frequently generates only a very temporary stay in the criminal proceedings.
If you’re in prison and cannot post a bond, such a dismissal of charges must be understood as temporary. Then, you may be released from custody that is only re-arrested at such time as the True Bill of Indictment is issued.
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