No indictment in Ferguson case

[ColesCountyDem]

70. There are essentially two ways to charge a defendant.

By far the most common method is for the prosecutor to file an 'information', in essence a criminal complaint setting forth the particulars of the offense. After the defendant's initial appearance in court, there is asunsequent evidentiary hearing, most commonly known as a 'preliminary hearing.

The second method is for a prosecutor to present evidence to a grand jury, explain the applicable criminal law, and ask the jury to return a 'true bill' ( indictment ). At one time, this method was preferred because it avoided having to hold a wide-ranging evidentiary hearing, limiting the defendant to challenging specific items of evidence in a much narrower proceeding. This is no longer true in many states, however, which is why filing a criminal information has become more common (less work for the prosecutor).