North Carolina § 15A-644 - Form and content of indictment, information or presentment.

§ 15A-644. Form and content of indictment, information or presentment.

An indictment must contain: The name of the superior court in which it is filed; The title of the action; Criminal charges pleaded as provided in Article 49 of this Chapter, Pleadings and Joinder; The signature of the prosecutor, but its omission is not a fatal defect; and The signature of the foreman or acting foreman of the grand jury attesting the concurrence of 12 or more grand jurors in the finding of a true bill of indictment. An information must contain everything required of an indictment in subsection (a) except that the accusation is that of the prosecutor and the provisions of subdivision (a)(5) do not apply. The information must also contain or have attached the waiver of indictment pursuant to G.S. 15A-642(c). A presentment must contain everything required of an indictment in subsection (a) except that the provisions of subdivisions (a)(4) and (5) do not apply and the foreman must by his signature attest the concurrence of 12 or more grand jurors in the presentment. History (1973, c. 1286, s. 1; 1975, c. 166, s. 27.) Cross References. - As to grand jury proceedings and operations, see G.S. 15A-623 . Legal Periodicals. - For survey of 1982 law relating to criminal law, see 61 N.C.L. Rev. 1060 (1983). For note examining the development of constitutional protections against race and class discrimination in the selection of jurors and policy considerations associated with extending these principles to foreman selection procedures, in light of State v. Cofield, 77 N.C. App. 699, 336 S.E.2d 439 (1985), see 64 N.C.L. Rev. 1179 (1986).