The prosecutions for offenses against the Commonwealth, unless otherwise provided, shall be by presentment, indictment or information. While any form of presentment, indictment or information which informs the accused of the nature and cause of the accusation against him shall be good the following shall be deemed sufficient for murder and manslaughter:
Commonwealth of Virginia _______________ county (or city) to-wit: The grand jurors of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in and for the body of the county (or city) of __________, upon their oaths present that A __________ B __________, on the __________ day of __________, 20_____, in the county (or city) of __________ feloniously did kill and murder one C __________ D __________ against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth.
A grand jury may, in case of homicide, which in their opinion amounts to manslaughter only, and not to murder, find an indictment against the accused for manslaughter and in such case the indictment shall be sufficient if it be in form or effect as follows:
Commonwealth of Virginia _______________ county (or city) to-wit: The grand jurors of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in and for the body of the county (or city) of _______________, upon their oaths present that A __________ B __________, on the __________ day of __________, 20_____, in the county (or city) of __________ feloniously and unlawfully did kill and slay one C __________ D __________, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth.
Code 1950, § 19.1-166; 1960, c. 366; 1975, c. 495.
Notes of Decisions
Joaquin Shadow Rams, Sr., a/k/a, etc. v. Commonwealth of Virginia, 823 S.E.2d 510 (Va. Ct. App. 2019).
· cites it 4× “Code § 19.2-221 clarifies that “‘short form indictments for murder and manslaughter’” are permitted, and it “specifically validates murder indictments [that] allege only that the defendant ‘feloniously did kill and murder’ the victim.”
Schwartz v. Commonwealth, 611 S.E.2d 631 (Va. Ct. App. 2005).
· cites it 10× “That defect, she argues, unlawfully denied her notice of the nature and character of the first-degree-murder charge submitted to the jury.”
Walshaw v. Commonwealth, 603 S.E.2d 633 (Va. Ct. App. 2004).
· cites it 8× “The indictment on which appellant was tried precisely follows Code § 19.2-221, providing short form indictments for murder and voluntary manslaughter.”
Satcher v. Commonwealth, 421 S.E.2d 821 (Va. 1992).
· cites it 4× “" Code § 19.2-221. Hence, it was unnecessary to include the words "willfully, deliberately and premeditatedly" in the indictment.”
Spain v. Commonwealth, 373 S.E.2d 728 (Va. Ct. App. 1988).
· cites it 4× “Code § 19.2-221, providing for short form indictments for murder, states: “[A]ny form of .”
Reed v. Com., 706 S.E.2d 854 (Va. 2011).
· cites it 2× “Reed does not contend that the absence of the foreman's signature from the indictments somehow prevented him from understanding the nature and character of the charges against him or that this deficiency in form interfered with his ability to defend against those charges.”
Simpson v. Commonwealth, 267 S.E.2d 134 (Va. 1980).
· cites it 2× “Code § 19.2-221, providing for short form indictments for murder and manslaughter, further announces that “any form of .”
Commonwealth v. Kuhne, 80 Va. Cir. 299 (Fairfax Cir. Ct. 2010).
· cites it 6× “The indictment in this case closely parallels the “short form” of indictment set forth in Va. Code § 19.2-221. An indictment that conforms Va.”
Commonwealth v. Rankin, 93 Va. Cir. 169 (Portsmouth Cir. Ct. 2016).
· cites it 2× “The Commonwealth responds that it presented the indictment to the Grand Jury, which was returned as *171 an indictment with a true bill, and that the information contained in the indictment sufficiently informs the accused of the nature and cause of the accusation against him…”
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