The standards governing the federal criminal process come from a variety of sources. There are some rules that are required by the Constitution, such as the right to a trial by jury. There are some rules that have been created by the courts over time to attempt to prevent constitutional violations. An example would be the Miranda rule that confessions from people in custody are not admissible if the defendant was not advised of the right to talk to a lawyer.
In addition, Congress has passed a series of rules named the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure that also attempt to provide structure and order to the criminal justice system in federal courts while living up to the requirements of the Constitution. The following is a basic overview of the rules.
The rules set out the procedures that must be followed to begin legal proceedings against a defendant. Leaving aside an indictment (for now), Rule 3 requires that a person may be brought before the court on a criminal complaint filed by a law enforcement officer before a magistrate judge. The law enforcement officer must set forth why he or she has probable cause to believe that this person committed a particular crime. Assuming that the magistrate agrees, an arrest warrant or a summons will be issued under Rule 4, and upon arrest the person must be brought before a magistrate “without delay” so that he or she can be informed of the charges and his or her rights under Rule 5. If arrested on a complaint, Rule 5.1 gives the individual the right to a preliminary hearing within 21 days where the government would be required to put on evidence to show probable cause for the arrest.
More often in the federal system, the charging document is an indictment (Rule 7) returned by the grand jury finding that there is probable cause (Rule 6). In that case, there is no preliminary hearing, and the defendant is advised of the charges at a procedure called an arraignment. (Rule 10).
The defendant, once arraigned or after a preliminary hearing, is given the opportunity to enter a plea of either guilty or not guilty. (Rule 11). In rare cases, a defendant will enter a third plea of “nolo contendere” or “I do not wish to dispute that”, which is similar to a guilty plea in many respects.
The rules then set out a number of ways that the government and the defendant will prepare for trial. The defendant can make certain motions to have charges dismissed under Rule 12, and the government is required under Rule 16 to provide information to the defendant about what evidence it has. If the defendant intends to use certain defenses, such as insanity or alibi, then it must give notice to the government to allow the government to prepare for that defense.
The rules governing the trial require that the defendant be given the opportunity for a trial by a jury of 12 persons. However, a defendant can also request to be tried before the judge instead of the jury. (Rule 23). After the evidence has been presented to the jury, the defendant can move for a judgment of acquittal under Rule 29, which would allow the judge to determine that there was no way for a reasonable jury to find the defendant guilty. The jury will be instructed on the law under Rule 30, and will deliberate to return a verdict under Rule 31.
There are many other elements to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, and a criminal defense attorney who specializes in trying federal crimes can help explain them and to navigate the process. For more information, the rules are available online at Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute.