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In reply to the discussion: Laurence Tribe : the Senate can't require the House, to "immediately" whatever is [View all]FBaggins
(28,706 posts)It isn't a criminal trial. But let's play that game.
The district attorney goes to the grand jury to get an indictment. Once they get that indictment, they can take it to the court.
Except that in that model, the House is both grand jury and prosecutor. But the Senate is both judge and jury.
The court can't just say, "Well, we're starting the trial on Joe Blow now."
They absolutely can. The prosecution doesn't set trial dates... both the prosecution and defendant ask the judge for what they want and the judge decides. If the prosecution says "we can't be ready by then"... the judge absolutely can say "tough luck". And if they don't show up when the court tells them to... the court can dismiss the case for failure to prosecute.
They have to wait for the prosecutor to file the case.
No they don't. If there's an indictment, the accused can go to court and claim the right to a speedy trial. If the prosecution needs more time, they have to convince the judge that it's warranted.