§ 257 Duty of magistrate on examination - Subpoenas for witnesses.

When someone is charged with a crime and has a preliminary hearing (called an "examination"), the judge has some basic jobs to do. First, the judge must read the criminal complaint out loud to the defendant. This makes sure the person knows exactly what they are being accused of before the hearing moves forward.

The judge also has to help both sides get their witnesses to court. Once the case has officially started, the judge must issue subpoenas whenever the prosecutor or the defendant needs one to bring a witness in. A subpoena is a legal order that requires someone to show up and testify.

This rule exists to keep the process fair. The defendant gets clear notice of the charges, and both sides get the tools they need to bring in the people who can speak to what happened.