6.06 Signatures

When a grand jury issues an indictment, the foreperson of that grand jury must sign it. If the charges come from an information instead, a prosecutor (an attorney for the Commonwealth) must sign that document. These signatures show that the proper process was followed to bring charges against someone.

There is a time limit on challenging a missing signature. If someone wants to argue that an indictment or information was not signed correctly, they have to raise that issue early. Once the defendant has entered a plea on the actual charges, they can no longer object based on a missing signature. Waiting too long means giving up that argument for good.