Rule 13 Trial together of indictments or information

If someone is charged with crimes in more than one indictment, the court has the power to combine those cases into one trial. This can only happen if the charges could have legally been filed together in a single indictment to begin with. The same rule applies when more than one person is charged and their cases could have been combined from the start.

There is one important exception. If the case involves a felony and more than one defendant, the court cannot force a joint trial if either the defendant or the state objects to it. In other words, either side can block a combined trial in felony cases involving multiple defendants, even if the charges could technically be combined.

If the court does combine the cases, the trial moves forward just like it would if all the charges had been part of one single indictment from the start. This means the same rules and procedures apply as they would in any normal single case.