Arraignment

Right to Counsel

It is essential in an arraignment to ensure that the accused is aware of his or her Sixth Amendment right to be represented by counsel. If a defendant attends the arraignment without benefit of counsel, the judge will inform the defendant of his or her right to counsel, at government expense if necessary. The accused must knowingly and intelligently waive this right if he or she wishes to represent himor herself. The Latin term for a person acting as his or her own lawyer is pro se. If the competency of the defendant to assist in his or her own defense is an issue at this point, the judge will address it.

The Reading of the Charges

In the federal system, and in that of many states, the formal charges to be read at the arraignment are determined by jury, called a “grand jury.” When the grand jury endorses the prosecutor's charges, it results in an indictment being forwarded to the court. The indictment is a formal written document that generally contains the name of the accused, the offense(s) of which he or she is being accused with reference to the specific statute(s) violated, the general details of the offense including the place and time of occurrence, and a list of potential prosecution witnesses.

In those states where a grand jury is not required, the prosecutor may submit an “information.” Similar in content to an indictment, an information results from a preliminary hearing in a courtroom and is forwarded to the judge to be presented to the accused at the arraignment. At this time, if the accused or the counsel for the accused believe that the indictment or information is without merit, they can move to quash or dismiss the charging instrument.

Answering the Charges: Basic Pleas

After the indictment or the information has been given to the defendant and the charge(s) are read in open court, the defendant will usually enter a plea. Most charges are answered with a plea of guilty or not guilty. However, an option open to an accused who does not wish to make a plea is to “stand mute,” in which case the judge will then enter a plea of not guilty for the person. Standing mute can have a legal advantage in those jurisdictions in which a not guilty plea acknowledges the defendant's acceptance of the jurisdiction of the court: by standing mute, the accused is not acknowledging this jurisdiction and is thus able to challenge any irregularities that may have occurred before or during the preliminary hearing or the grand jury proceedings. A psychological advantage of standing mute is that the accused may feel that he or she is asserting innocence by not responding to the charges.

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