§ 521 Acquittal, what constitutes.

If someone is found not guilty at trial after the court actually looked at the evidence and the facts of the case, that person is considered acquitted of that crime. This is true even if the original charging paperwork, like the indictment or information, had some kind of mistake or problem with it.

In simple terms, a paperwork error can't undo a not guilty verdict. If the case was heard and decided on its actual merits, meaning the judge or jury looked at the real evidence and made a decision, that verdict stands. Prosecutors can't come back later and say the charging document was flawed, so the acquittal doesn't count.

This protects people from being tried twice for the same crime just because of a technical error in how the charges were originally written up. Once a person has been truly acquitted, that decision is final and protected, regardless of any small mistakes in the legal paperwork that started the case.