Criminal Procedure and Pretrial Process
Core concepts
Know the sequence: report or complaint, investigation, arrest, initial appearance, pretrial detention review, indictment or referral to trial, and trial. Understand the grounds and formalities for arrest, the requirement that the accused be informed of the charges and of the right to counsel, and the promptness requirement for bringing a detainee before a judicial authority. Study search and seizure rules, the warrant requirement and its exceptions, and the treatment of illegally obtained evidence. Learn bail and pretrial detention criteria - detention is exceptional, not the default. Know the rights of the accused during interrogation, including the right to remain silent and to have counsel present.
Traps
Questions often test whether a procedural defect is fatal or curable. Failure to inform of rights may render statements inadmissible, but does not automatically void the case. Another trap is conflating arrest with detention pending trial - they have different legal bases and review periods. Watch for questions on warrantless searches: consent must be voluntary, and incident-to-arrest searches have limits.
Rule of thumb
For any procedural question, ask: Was the authority lawful? Were the formalities observed? Was the accused informed of rights? Was judicial review prompt? A defect at any step shifts the burden to the prosecution to justify the evidence or the detention.
Worked example
Police search a home without a warrant, claiming urgency. If the urgency is genuine and contemporaneous, the search may be valid; if the urgency was created by the officers' own delay, the evidence is likely excluded.