What happens at an arraignment? ?

Question

I never knew what evil was in this world until I heard about this case.

http://ydr.inyork.com/ci_10109216

This piece of **** who beat the two year old girl to death and her mother are scheduled for an "arraignement" on September 5th. What is an arraignment? I hope it means a long public beating and hanging because that's what these two deserve for the torturous death of this poor baby.

Answer 1

It is when the defendants, presumed innocent until proven guilty, are paraded before the judge to hear what kind of plea they will offer...guilty, not guilty, or no contest.

Then the court sets the time of trial and conditions of bonding if any.

Answer 2

An arraignment is a procedural hearing where the criminal charges are formally presented and explained to the defendant, he is told what his rights are, he is given an opportunity to request a court-appointed lawyer if he can not afford one, he is asked for a plea (usually a pro forma "not guilty" that can be changed after review of discoverable evidence and discussion with counsel), his bail amounts and conditions are set, and a schedule for trial is put in place.  This is the normal arrangement in the US where, unless something has recently changed that I am not aware of, a person is to be considered innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt after a public trial before a jury of one's peers..