Secret indictment

A secret indictment is the basis in which the prosecutor brings the person giving the testimony before a grand jury to give a testimony so that the accused can be arrested with a warrant. Note that the person being accused of a crime is not aware that he/she is being charged with a crime because they have no idea they are being indicted. That is why it is called a "silent" indictment. But as with any other criminal case you have a constitutional right to a trial by jury.


QUESTION:
Dealing with secret indictment in criminal matter, how long after a crime does the law have to charge you? My brother was secretly indicted of multiple trafficking (drugs) charges and the Ohio law waited about 6 month to indict him. I would like to know if anyone knows how long is the statute of limitations in Ohio for trafficking cocaine/marijuana felony charges 3, 4, and 5.

ANSWER:
There are 2 types of statutes of limitations that MAY apply. One is the time between when the crime is committed and when you are indicted. That is more than six months. The other is between when you are arrested and when the trial must commence, assuming the defendant does agree to a delay. NEITHER applies to the time between an indictment and an arrest.

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QUESTION:
How does a secret indictment work? How long does it take? Do you get something in the mail? I'm in Tennessee.

ANSWER:
As a courtesy, your attorney (if you currently have one) will be contacted and he/she will then advise you to turn yourself in to be arraigned. You may or may not be released on bail and you may need someone to post bail.

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QUESTION:
If you get a secret indictment... Don't you get a trial to have your witnesses testify for you? My daughter is being charged with a felony 4. She went to preliminary hearing and was turned over to grand jury. Now it is secret indictment. Won't she get a chance for a fair trial and have witnesses on her behalf?

ANSWER:
The preliminary hearing's purpose is to determine whether or not their is sufficient evidence to bind her over for trial, and probably to set a bond. In most states, felony cases can only be filed after presentation to the grand jury. Grand juries meet in secret. They probably returned a "true bill" on your daughter which cause the indictment to be filed. She still has the right under the constitution to a jury trial, and to cross examine the state's witnesses, and to have witnesses called in her behalf. Her next hearing should be to determine the first trial date.

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QUESTION:
Does the US have a secret indictment against Julian Assange? He is the editor in chief of WikiLeaks, a whistleblower website and conduit for worldwide news leaks.

ANSWER:
Why would the Department of Justice bother keeping an indictment secret? It makes little sense. If a grand jury has delivered an indictment, this would be the time to make it public. The UK has custody of Assange and appear inclined to keep him under close watch. If they were willing to deny bail for a no-charge warrant from Sweden, the court would almost certainly do the same for an espionage warrant from the US. Furthermore, the announcement of an indictment wouldn’t exactly be a public-relations disaster for the administration, either.

[msg]

Really should not be allowed IMHO

My brother is being pushed by officers to wear a wire in the hopes of secretly indicting a known drug dealer in our city. He doesn't want to do it, but they've made it clear that his criminal history & his current misdemeanor will give them cause to hold him in the system, for quite some time. He has a job lined up in another state, so this of course poses a problem. My question is what happens to the people who help indict suspects? Are their names ever revealed at any point during the procedures? My family will still be living here & I'm worried about repercussions. My brother currently lives with my family & our name isn't a generic family name. I'm worried for the sake of my family.

Originally Posted by Tennessee My brother is being pushed by officers to wear a wire in the hopes of secretly indicting a known drug dealer in our city. He doesn't want to do it, but they've made it clear that his criminal history & his current misdemeanor will give them cause to hold him in the system, for quite some time. He has a job lined up in another state, so this of course poses a problem. My question is what happens to the people who help indict suspects? Are their names ever revealed at any point during the procedures? My family will still be living here & I'm worried about repercussions. My brother currently lives with my family & our name isn't a generic family name. I'm worried for the sake of my family.

well, first off all, no one is forced to become a snitch. plane an simple! if ur brother cant do the time, than he shouldnt have done the crime. an he shouldnt just be snitching of folks to try to help him self. tell him to man up an to keep others out off his ****. cause snitching will make it worse.