§ 22-3203 Consolidation for trial of separate indictments or informations.

If a person is facing more than one criminal case at the same time, the court can combine those cases into one trial. This is allowed as long as the different charges could have legally been filed together in the first place, in one single complaint, information, or indictment.

This matters because it affects how a case moves through court. Combining cases can save time and avoid making a defendant go through multiple separate trials for related charges. But it also means a person might face several charges at once in front of the same jury, instead of having each case heard separately.

The decision to combine cases is up to the judge. The judge looks at whether the charges are connected closely enough that joining them would have been proper from the start, such as if they came from the same act, the same set of events, or a similar pattern of conduct.