Handbook for Federal Grand Jurors

[Walt Starr]

Peopel should read this, especially the definition of an indictment. An indictment is issued for each crime, not for each defendent:

http://www.moed.uscourts.gov/Jury/FederalHandbookForGrandJurors.pdf

[leveymg]

1. That mean if Clemmons is right, there are only 1-5 charges among all

those who might have been indicted.

This may be a bit of an anticlimax for some of us.

[Walt Starr]

2. Well, here's five charges and three defendents in a single federal

indictment:

http://www.fas.org/irp/ops/ci/franklin0805.pdf

Why three defendents and five charges?

It was all a single crime.

[Lex]

3. So multiple charges can be in one indictment?

[leveymg]

5. That indictment: three defendants, five counts of 3 crimes

I think you're right. If the Plame case follows suit with Franklin, we may see up to five seperate indictments with multiple defendants and crimes. Hope so.

Don't you just hate the unclear semantics in these news and blog reports.

[Walt Starr]

6. It's because nobody has a clue

"22 indicments" could have been referring to 22 charges of 14 defendents in two indictments, for instance.

[geek tragedy]

4. We don't know what the source's understanding is.

Note that the Franklin indictment had multiple defendants AND multiple counts/crimes.

[Walt Starr]

7. Multiple charges under a single crime

One crime (murder) can carry several charges, all of which are felonies. It would still be a single crime (act)

Outting Plame (the crime) could carry charges under the Espionage Act, the IIPA, and conspiracy and charge two to five people easily. One indictment.