Step four in our ten step series of a federal criminal case explains what a criminal arraignment is in a federal criminal matter and what happens during an arraignment. There are slight differences between the procedure for arraignment in North Carolina state court and in federal court. This article discusses federal arraignments. An arraignment is a…
Category: The Law
Step 3: “Sorry About the Indictment”
An indictment follows the decision reached by the grand jury discussed in Step Two of this series. A formal indictment is simply another step in the procedure of the federal criminal justice process and does not bear any weight on whether you are guilty or innocent of a crime. The Indictment An Indictment is a…
Step Two: A Grand Jury Subpoena
A grand jury subpoena is often the second (or an early) step in the federal criminal justice process. A grand jury subpoena is a formal document that orders a named individual to appear before the Court at a certain time and date to give testimony (subpoena “ad testificandum”) and/or produce documents relevant to the investigation (subpoena…
Gamble v. United States: Yes, you can be prosecuted for the same crime twice.
On Monday, June 17, The United States Supreme court held that criminal defendants may be prosecuted for the same offenses in both federal and state court, reaffirming its long-held view of the dual-sovereignty doctrine. In Gamble v. United States, Petitioner Terance Gamble was convicted under an Alabama statute for possessing a firearm as a felon. U.S. No. 17-646…
Exploring a Federal Criminal Case Series: Step One
Federal Investigation Over the course of the next 10 weeks, this series will explain the steps of a Federal Criminal Case. We begin with step one: Federal Investigation. A federal investigation is the first step in the federal criminal justice process. Many people are unaware that they are being investigated until after they’ve already participated…