Opinion ID: 1366352
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: jeopardy issue

Text: It is well-settled law in West Virginia that jeopardy does not attach until a defendant has been placed on trial on a valid indictment, before a court of competent jurisdiction, has been arraigned, has pleaded and a jury has been impaneled and sworn. Brooks v. Boles, 151 W.Va. 576, 153 S.E.2d 526, 530 (1967). The Court has reiterated this holding in subsequent cases. [3] Application of the Court's holding in Brooks and its progeny makes it impossible to find jeopardy attached to the defendant in the instant case. Here the defendant had not been arraigned, had not pled, had not been placed on trial, and a jury had not been impaneled or sworn. Here the defendant had been indicted, various motions had been filed, and a preliminary hearing held. [4] Since jeopardy had not attached, dismissal with prejudice on the grounds of double jeopardy was not warranted.