There are three documents that can be used to initiate a criminal case in federal court- an Indictment, an Information, and a Complaint. An Indictment is issued after a grand jury has decided, based on evidence presented to them, that there is sufficient reason (or probable cause) to believe a crime was committed by the person named. A defendant may be brought before the court on an Information if the crime charged is a misdemeanor or the defendant, though charged with a felony, has waived prosecution by Indictment. This waiver generally occurs in connection with a plea agreement to a different charge than the one originally filed.

If you have been charged by Complaint, this means a grand jury has not yet considered whether there is probable cause to believe you committed the crime charged. Instead, a statement accusing you of a crime is presented to the court. This statement (or Complaint) will often have an attached Affidavit, signed by a law enforcement officer, describing the crime and the role they believe you played in it. In this instance, you have the right to a Preliminary Hearing in front of the magistrate judge within ten days of your initial appearance if you are in custody or within twenty days if you are released from custody. At that hearing, the judge will determine whether there is sufficient probable cause to believe you committed the crime alleged and should be subject to further proceedings. Sometimes, the grand jury will return an Indictment before your Preliminary Hearing. If that happens your Preliminary Hearing will be stricken, or canceled.