Editing Arraignment (section)

=== United Kingdom ===
In [[English law|England]], [[Welsh law|Wales]], and [[Law of Northern Ireland|Northern Ireland]], arraignment is the first of 11 stages in a criminal trial, and involves the clerk of the court reading out the indictment.

In England and Wales, the [[Law enforcement in the United Kingdom|police]] cannot legally detain anyone for more than 24 hours without charging them, unless an officer with the [[Police ranks of the United Kingdom|rank]] of superintendent (or above) authorises detention for a further 12 hours (i.e., 36 hours total), or a judge (who will be a [[Magistrate (England and Wales)|magistrate]]) authorises detention by the police before charge for up to a maximum of 96 hours; for [[Terrorism in the United Kingdom|terrorism]]-related offences a person can be held by the police for up to 28 days before charge.<ref name=fti-england-wales>{{cite web|title=Criminal Proceedings and Defence Rights in England and Wales|publisher=[[Fair Trials International]]|url=http://www.fairtrials.org/wp-content/uploads/Criminal-Proceedings-and-Defence-Rights-in-England-and-Wales-Aug-2013.pdf |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://www.fairtrials.org/wp-content/uploads/Criminal-Proceedings-and-Defence-Rights-in-England-and-Wales-Aug-2013.pdf |archive-date=2022-10-09 |url-status=live}}</ref> If they are not released after being charged, they should be brought before a court as soon as practicable.<ref name=fti-england-wales/>

In [[Scots law|Scotland]], the police cannot detain anyone for more than 12 hours without charging them unless an officer of the rank of superintendent (or above) authorises detention for a further 12 hours (i.e., up to 24 hours in total); for terrorism-related offences a person can be held by the police for up to 14 days before charge.<ref name=fti-scotland>{{cite web|title=Criminal Proceedings and Defence Rights in Scotland|publisher=[[Fair Trials International]]|url=http://www.fairtrials.org/wp-content/uploads/Criminal-Proceedings-and-Defence-Rights-in-Scotland.pdf}}</ref> If they are not released after being charged, they should be brought before a court as soon as practicable.<ref name=fti-scotland/>