Editing Defendant (section)

==Criminal defendants==
In a criminal trial, a defendant is a person accused ([[Criminal charge|charged]]) of committing an offense (a crime; an act defined as punishable under [[criminal law]]). The other party to a criminal trial is usually a public [[prosecutor]], but in some jurisdictions, private prosecutions are allowed.

Criminal defendants are often taken into custody by [[police]] and brought before a court under an [[arrest warrant]]. Criminal defendants are usually obliged to post [[bail]] before being released from custody. For serious cases, such as murder, bail may be refused. Defendants must be present at every stage of the proceedings against them. (There is an exception for very minor cases such as traffic offenses in jurisdictions which treat them as crimes.)

If more than one person is accused, the people may be referred as "co-defendant" or "co-conspirator" in British and common law courts.

In some jurisdictions, vulnerable defendants may be able to get access of services of a [[non-registered intermediary]] to assist with communication at court.<ref>O'Mahony, B.M., Smith, K., & Milne, R. (2011). "The early identification of vulnerable witnesses prior to an investigative interview"
 ''British Journal of Forensic Practice'', 13 (2), 114-123</ref>