Criminal procedure: complaint, arrest and first appearance

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Library edition words from Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure

The key parts of Rules 3 to 5.1: the complaint, the arrest warrant, the initial appearance and the preliminary hearing.

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Words from
Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure (as amended to Dec. 1, 2025). Enacted law, free to use.
Edition
Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, as amended to Dec. 1, 2025 (House Judiciary Committee print)
Checked
Word for word against the source, on 17 October 2026.
How it was made
Each card is a rule’s own words, under its number and heading; a list becomes the card’s items.Words split across lines are joined, an item’s closing “; and” is dropped, and the print’s two single quotation marks are set as one double mark.
Edited by
Aheadso chose the cards and set them out.Every word on them is the source’s.
On the shelf
Law, Criminal procedure · 21 cards · 4 topics

The cards

  1. FRCrP 3The Complaint
  2. FRCrP 3: The ComplaintThe complaint is a written statement of the essential facts constituting the offense charged. Except as provided in Rule 4.1, it must be made under oath before a magistrate judge or, if none is reasonably available, before a state or local judicial officer.
  3. FRCrP 4Arrest Warrant or Summons on a Complaint
  4. FRCrP 4(a): IssuanceIf the complaint or one or more affidavits filed with the complaint establish probable cause to believe that an offense has been committed and that the defendant committed it, the judge must issue an arrest warrant to an officer authorized to execute it. At the request of an attorney for the government, the judge must issue a summons, instead of a warrant, to a person authorized to serve it. A judge may issue more than one warrant or summons on the same complaint. If an individual defendant fails to appear in response to a summons, a judge may, and upon request of an attorney for the government must, issue a warrant. If an organizational defendant fails to appear in response to a summons, a judge may take any action authorized by United States law.
  5. FRCrP 4(b)(1): Warrant
    1. 1contain the defendant’s name or, if it is unknown, a name or description by which the defendant can be identified with reasonable certainty
    2. 2describe the offense charged in the complaint
    3. 3command that the defendant be arrested and brought without unnecessary delay before a magistrate judge or, if none is reasonably available, before a state or local judicial officer
    4. 4be signed by a judge
    A warrant must:
  6. FRCrP 4(b)(2): SummonsA summons must be in the same form as a warrant except that it must require the defendant to appear before a magistrate judge at a stated time and place.
  7. FRCrP 4(c)(1): By WhomOnly a marshal or other authorized officer may execute a warrant. Any person authorized to serve a summons in a federal civil action may serve a summons.
  8. FRCrP 4(c)(2): LocationA warrant may be executed, or a summons served, within the jurisdiction of the United States or anywhere else a federal statute authorizes an arrest. A summons to an organization under Rule 4(c)(3)(D) may also be served at a place not within a judicial district of the United States.
  9. FRCrP 5Initial Appearance
  10. FRCrP 5(a)(1): Appearance Upon an Arrest
    1. 1A person making an arrest within the United States must take the defendant without unnecessary delay before a magistrate judge, or before a state or local judicial officer as Rule 5(c) provides, unless a statute provides otherwise
    2. 2A person making an arrest outside the United States must take the defendant without unnecessary delay before a magistrate judge, unless a statute provides otherwise
  11. FRCrP 5(b): Arrest Without a WarrantIf a defendant is arrested without a warrant, a complaint meeting Rule 4(a)’s requirement of probable cause must be promptly filed in the district where the offense was allegedly committed.
  12. FRCrP 5(d)(1): If the defendant is charged with a felony, the judge must inform the defendant of the following
    1. 1the complaint against the defendant, and any affidavit filed with it
    2. 2the defendant’s right to retain counsel or to request that counsel be appointed if the defendant cannot obtain counsel
    3. 3the circumstances, if any, under which the defendant may secure pretrial release
    4. 4any right to a preliminary hearing
    5. 5the defendant’s right not to make a statement, and that any statement made may be used against the defendant
    6. 6that a defendant who is not a United States citizen may request that an attorney for the government or a federal law enforcement official notify a consular officer from the defendant’s country of nationality that the defendant has been arrested—but that even without the defendant’s request, a treaty or other international agreement may require consular notification
All 21 cards
  1. FRCrP 5(d)(2): Consulting with CounselThe judge must allow the defendant reasonable opportunity to consult with counsel.
  2. FRCrP 5(d)(3): Detention or ReleaseThe judge must detain or release the defendant as provided by statute or these rules.
  3. FRCrP 5(d)(4): PleaA defendant may be asked to plead only under Rule 10.
  4. FRCrP 5(f)(1): In GeneralIn all criminal proceedings, on the first scheduled court date when both prosecutor and defense counsel are present, the judge shall issue an oral and written order to prosecution and defense counsel that confirms the disclosure obligation of the prosecutor under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963) and its progeny, and the possible consequences of violating such order under applicable law.
  5. FRCrP 5.1Preliminary Hearing
  6. FRCrP 5.1(a): If a defendant is charged with an offense other than a petty offense, a magistrate judge must conduct a preliminary hearing unless
    1. 1the defendant waives the hearing
    2. 2the defendant is indicted
    3. 3the government files an information under Rule 7(b) charging the defendant with a felony
    4. 4the government files an information charging the defendant with a misdemeanor
    5. 5the defendant is charged with a misdemeanor and consents to trial before a magistrate judge
  7. FRCrP 5.1(c): SchedulingThe magistrate judge must hold the preliminary hearing within a reasonable time, but no later than 14 days after the initial appearance if the defendant is in custody and no later than 21 days if not in custody.
  8. FRCrP 5.1(e): Hearing and FindingAt the preliminary hearing, the defendant may cross-examine adverse witnesses and may introduce evidence but may not object to evidence on the ground that it was unlawfully acquired. If the magistrate judge finds probable cause to believe an offense has been committed and the defendant committed it, the magistrate judge must promptly require the defendant to appear for further proceedings.
  9. FRCrP 5.1(f): Discharging the DefendantIf the magistrate judge finds no probable cause to believe an offense has been committed or the defendant committed it, the magistrate judge must dismiss the complaint and discharge the defendant. A discharge does not preclude the government from later prosecuting the defendant for the same offense.

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Every card here is copied word for word from its source.None of it is written by AI.