arraign

Also found in: Dictionary, Thesaurus, Medical.

arraign

v. to bring a criminal defendant before the court at which time the charges are presented to him/her, the opportunity to enter a plea (or ask for a continuance to plead) is given, a determination of whether the party has a lawyer is made (or whether a lawyer needs to be appointed), if necessary setting the amount of bail, and future appearances are scheduled. (See: appearance, arraignment)

arraign

verb accusare, accuse, accuse of wrong, blame, brand, brand with reproach, bring accusation, bring before a court, bring to trial, bring up for investigation, bring up on charges, call before a court, call to account, charge, cite, complain against, criminate, denounce, denunciate, formally accuse, formally charge, formally criminate, formally incriminate, implicate, incriminate, postulare, prefer charges, prosecute

See also: accuse, blame, charge, complain, denounce, prosecute

arraign

in English and American legal process, to call the accused to the bar of the court to answer an indictment. The hearing is called an arraignment.

References in classic literature ?

He tried to drink, and revel, and swear away the memory; but often, in the deep night, whose solemn stillness arraigns the bad soul in forced communion with herself, he had seen that pale mother rising by his bedside, and felt the soft twining of that hair around his fingers, till the cold sweat would roll down his face, and he would spring from his bed in horror.

View in context

EFCC to arraign sacked bank chiefs in Nigeria

The ICC would arraign Americans before judges from authoritarian or even murderous regimes that hate America and Americans.