Art. 623 Change granted; transfer

If a judge decides a criminal trial needs to move to a different location, the court has to send the case to another parish for trial. This usually happens when the judge believes the defendant can't get a fair trial in the original location, often because of heavy media coverage or strong local opinions about the case.

Once the judge grants this change, it's not optional. The case must be transferred to a different parish so the trial can move forward somewhere else. This protects the defendant's right to a fair trial by making sure the jury pool isn't already biased against them before the trial even starts.