TITLE TWO — PRELIMINARY PROCEEDINGS
Rule 4. Form and Contents of Indictment or Information; Amendment
Contents. An indictment and a criminal information shall contain a caption as provided by law, together with a plain, concise description of the act which constitutes the crime or an appropriate legal term descriptive thereof.
Caption. The caption of an accusatory instrument shall state the name of the court and the county; the title of the action in the form “The State of Ridgeway v. [username]”; the case number assigned by the electronic filing system, if one has been assigned; the designation of the nature of the paper; and the name and, where the filer is an attorney, the State Bar license number of the person filing it.
Form of the Accusation. Every prosecution shall commence by the authority of the State of Ridgeway, and every indictment shall conclude with the words “against the peace and dignity of the State,” as required by Const. art. V § 10.
Counts. Each offense charged shall be stated in a separate count. Each count shall state:
the username of the defendant, or, if the username is unknown, any name or description by which the defendant can be identified with reasonable certainty;
the offense charged by name and by citation to the statute, ordinance, or code provision alleged to have been violated;
the date, or range of dates, and the place or in-game location of the conduct alleged; and
a plain and concise statement of the act constituting the offense, sufficient to give the defendant and the court reasonable notice of the charge.
Subscription of Application for Issuance of Process. An application for issuance of process may be subscribed by any law enforcement officer within the jurisdiction of a crime, a prosecutor, or a private person.
Verification. A criminal information shall be signed by the complainant under oath as provided by Rule 3(6)(a). An indictment requires no verification and is authenticated by its return to a judge in open court under Rule 5(12).
Indictment Based Upon Secondary Evidence. An indictment shall not be dismissed on the grounds that the evidence presented before the grand jury consisted in whole or in part of the record from the defendant’s probable cause hearing or that other hearsay evidence was presented before the grand jury.
Defects.
Form. A defect of form, including an error in the caption, a misdesignation of the statute, a clerical error, or a failure to comply with subdivision (2) or (3) of this rule, is not a ground for dismissal unless the defendant demonstrates prejudice. Such a defect is a ground upon which the clerk may reject the filing under Rule 2.1(9).
Substance. An accusatory instrument that fails to charge an offense, that charges an offense over which the court has no jurisdiction, or that fails to identify the defendant with reasonable certainty is defective in substance and shall be dismissed on motion under Rule 13(3). Dismissal for a defect in substance is without prejudice to the filing of a sufficient instrument, unless the court orders otherwise.
Surplusage. The court may on motion order that surplusage be disregarded. The electronic filing system provides no means of striking language from a document once received; an order under this paragraph directs the parties and the court, and any corrected instrument shall be filed as provided by subdivision (9).
Amendment.
Upon his own motion or the written motion of either party, a judge may allow amendment of the form of a criminal information if such amendment would not prejudice the defendant or the state.
No amendment shall charge an offense not charged in the original instrument, broaden the conduct alleged, or elevate the grade of an offense. To make such a change the State shall file a superseding instrument under Rule 3.2(11).
An amendment is effected by filing an amended accusatory instrument, which is a new filing bearing its own filing date and Bates number and which supersedes the earlier instrument as a matter of pleading. The earlier instrument is not altered, withdrawn, or removed from the record.
Bill of Particulars. A defendant who requires further particulars of the charge may proceed under Rule 13(2).