Page:1939 North Dakota Session Laws.pdf/224

CRIME § 43. .] When an indictment has been presented by the grand jury or an information filed by the prosecuting attorney, it shall be filed by the clerk of the court, and transcribed in a book kept for that purpose. In each case the clerk shall certify in the book that he has compared the transcription with the original, and that the transcription with the original, and that the transcription is a true copy of the original.

§ 44. .] All indictments, informations and the records thereof shall be in the custody of the clerk of the court to which they are presented, and shall not be inspected by any person other than the judge the clerk, the attorney-general and the prosecuting attorney until the defendant is in custody or has been admitted to bail.

§ 45. .) When an indictment or information, filed as provided for in Section 43, has been so mutilated or obliterated as to be illegible, or has been lost, mislaid, destroyed, stolen or for any other reason cannot be produced at the arraignment or trial of the defendant, he may be arraigned and tried on a copy thereof taken from the clerk's book and certified by the clerk.

§ 46. .] Every person who has been indicted or informed against for an offense shall be furnished with a copy of the indictment or information together with the indorsements thereon at least twenty-four hours before he is required to plead thereto, and he shall not be required to plead to such indictment or information if it has not been so furnished to him. A failure to furnish such copy shall not affect the validity of any subsequent proceeding against the defendant if he pleads to the indictment or information.

§ 47. .) When an indictment or information is filed, the names of all the witnesses or (r)despondents on whose evidence the indictment or information was based shall be endorsed thereon be- fore it is presented, and the prosecuting attorney shall endorse the indictment or information at such time as the court may by rule or otherwise prescribe the names of such other witnesses as he purposes to call. A failure to endorse the said names shall not affect the validity or insufficiency of the indictment or information, but the court in which the indictment or information was filed shall, upon application of the defendant, direct the names of such witnesses to be endorsed. No continuance shall be allowed because of the failure to endorse any of the said names unless such application was made at the earliest opportunity and then only if a continuance is necessary in the interest of justice.