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A formal written accusation, issued by a prosecutor or grand jury, charging a person with a serious criminal offense and initiating prosecution.
An indictment is the formal charging instrument that commences a criminal case for serious offenses. It sets out the specific crimes alleged, the statutory provisions violated, and the factual basis sufficient to put the accused on notice of the case against them. An indictment is not a finding of guilt; it reflects only that a prosecuting authority (or a grand jury, where one is used) has determined there is enough evidence to proceed to trial.
Procedures vary by jurisdiction:
For Model UN delegates and IR researchers, indictments are politically consequential because they convert allegations into formal legal proceedings, can trigger arrest warrants, and may constrain a suspect's travel through cooperation obligations on states parties. They also frequently become diplomatic flashpoints when the accused is a sitting head of state or senior official, raising questions about head-of-state immunity, complementarity, and enforcement.
An indictment typically remains in force until trial, withdrawal by the prosecutor, dismissal by a court, or — in some international contexts — the death of the accused.
No. It is only a formal accusation establishing that there is sufficient evidence to proceed. The accused remains presumed innocent until proven guilty at trial.
An indictment is issued by a grand jury (or, in some systems, a prosecutor confirmed by a judge), while an information is a charging document filed directly by a prosecutor without grand jury involvement, typically after a preliminary hearing.
Yes. The ICC has issued warrants against sitting heads of state, including Sudan's Omar al-Bashir (2009, 2010) and Russia's Vladimir Putin (2023), though enforcement depends on cooperation by states parties.