French Code of Criminal Procedure
In forceIf the examining magistrate considers that the acts charged against the persons under investigation constitute an offence classified as a crime by law, he shall order their indictment before the assize court, subject to article 181-1.
He may also refer related offences to that court.
The committal order shall contain, on pain of nullity, the statement and legal classification of the facts, which are the subject of the charge, and shall specify the identity of the accused. It also states, if applicable, that the accused benefits from the provisions of Article 132-78 of the Criminal Code.
When it has become final, the committal order covers any procedural defects, subject to Article 269-1.
The judicial supervision or house arrest with electronic surveillance to which the accused is subject shall continue to have effect.
The pre-trial detention, house arrest with electronic surveillance or judicial supervision of persons remanded for a related offence shall cease, unless the provisions of the third paragraph of Article 179 are applied. The period provided for in the fourth paragraph of article 179 is then extended to six months.
If the accused is remanded in custody, the committal order issued against him shall remain enforceable and the person concerned shall remain in custody until his trial by the Assize Court, subject to the provisions of the following two paragraphs and l'article 148-1. If it has been issued, the arrest warrant retains its enforceability; if they have been issued, the warrants to bring or search cease to be enforceable, without prejudice to the possibility of the investigating judge issuing an arrest warrant against the accused.
The accused detained for the acts for which he is referred to the assize court shall be released immediately if he has not appeared before the court by the end of a period of one year from either the date on which the indictment decision became final if he was then detained, or the date on which he was subsequently remanded in custody.
However, if the hearing on the merits cannot begin before the expiry of this period, the Investigating Chamber may, exceptionally, by a decision made in accordance with Article 144 and stating the factual or legal reasons preventing the case from being heard, order the extension of pre-trial detention for a further six months. The accused is entitled to appear if he or his lawyer so requests. This extension may be renewed once under the same conditions. If the accused has not appeared before the Assize Court by the end of this further extension, he is immediately released.
The examining magistrate forwards the case file with his order to the public prosecutor. The latter is required to send it without delay to the clerk's office of the assize court.
The exhibits, of which a record is made, are sent to the clerk's office of the assize court if the latter sits in a court other than that of the investigating judge.
