Open charges are criminal charges a prosecutor has formally filed with a court that haven’t yet reached a final outcome. No conviction, no acquittal, no dismissal. The case is live, you’re expected to participate in every stage until it resolves, and in the meantime the status can affect your job prospects, your housing search, your right to travel, and your right to possess a firearm.
When a Case Becomes Open
An arrest alone doesn’t create an open charge. Police can arrest on probable cause, but the case only becomes open when the prosecutor’s office reviews the evidence and files it with the court, either through a grand jury indictment or a charging document called an information or complaint.1Cornell Law School. Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 7 From that filing forward, the case sits in the court system until it’s resolved.
Shortly after filing, you appear for arraignment. The judge confirms you’ve received the charges, asks you to enter a plea, addresses your right to counsel, and decides whether you’ll be released or held pending trial.2U.S. Department of Justice. Initial Hearing / Arraignment
What Happens While the Case Is Pending
Between arraignment and resolution, both sides file pretrial motions asking the judge to rule on things like suppressing evidence,3Cornell Law Institute. Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure Rule 12 – Pleadings and Pretrial Motions exchange evidence in discovery, and often negotiate a plea in parallel. Most cases end before a jury is ever picked.
You also have a Sixth Amendment right to counsel that attaches the moment charges are filed and covers every critical stage.4Law.Cornell.Edu. Sixth Amendment If you can’t afford an attorney, the court appoints one. You also have a right to a speedy trial. At the federal level, the Speedy Trial Act generally requires trial to begin within 70 days of indictment or first appearance, whichever is later, though a long list of events pauses that clock.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3161 – Time Limits and Exclusions State courts run on their own timelines. If the government misses the deadline, you can move to dismiss, but you have to raise the issue before trial or before entering a guilty plea.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3162 – Sanctions
Conditions of Pretrial Release
If the judge lets you out before trial, the release almost always comes with rules. At minimum, you cannot commit any new crimes while the case is pending.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3142 – Release or Detention of a Defendant Pending Trial Beyond that, the judge picks conditions to fit the case. Common ones:
- Travel restrictions, such as being confined to a judicial district or state and surrendering your passport.
- No-contact orders covering the alleged victim and potential witnesses.
- A prohibition on possessing firearms or other dangerous weapons.
- Substance restrictions, sometimes with random drug testing.
- Regular check-ins with a pretrial services officer or law enforcement agency.
- A curfew.
Violating any condition can send you back into custody until trial. Judges have wide discretion, and terms are stricter for serious charges or when you’re viewed as a flight risk. If bail is set, you can post the full amount yourself (refundable if you appear as required) or hire a bond agent for a non-refundable fee, typically around 10%. For the most serious offenses, or when no set of conditions can reasonably ensure public safety or your appearance, a judge can order you detained without bail.
Employment and Background Checks
Open charges show up on background checks, and this is where most people feel the pressure. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, arrests and non-conviction records, including pending charges, can appear on a background report for up to seven years from the date of the charge. Actual convictions have no time limit.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports If a reporting agency includes your pending charge, it must also include any existing disposition information, so a later dismissal should appear alongside the charge.9Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Fair Credit Reporting – Background Screening
On the employer side, EEOC guidance is clear that an arrest by itself doesn’t prove wrongdoing. A blanket policy of rejecting every applicant with an arrest record can violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act if it causes a disproportionate impact based on race or national origin. Employers can look at the underlying conduct and assess fitness for a specific role, but they cannot treat the mere existence of a charge as automatic disqualification.10U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
Professional licenses add another wrinkle. Many licensing boards require disclosure of open cases, and some will pause your application until the case resolves. The specifics vary by profession and jurisdiction. A pending DUI might not matter to a plumbing board but could stall a commercial driver’s license.
Housing
Landlords routinely run criminal background checks, and open charges can complicate a rental search. HUD guidance says that denying housing based solely on an arrest record, without a conviction, raises serious Fair Housing Act concerns. For pending charges, HUD’s position is that landlords should assess whether a conviction for the pending offense would actually disqualify the applicant under their screening criteria, and if not, approve the application. Not every landlord follows that guidance, so you may need to ask for an individualized review.
Firearms
This one catches people off guard. If you’re under indictment for any crime punishable by more than one year in prison, which covers most felonies, federal law makes it illegal for you to receive or transport a firearm or ammunition across state lines.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 922 – Unlawful Acts Violating the prohibition is a separate federal offense. If you own firearms and get indicted for a felony, talk to your attorney immediately about how to handle them.
Travel, Passports, and Immigration
Pretrial release conditions often restrict your movement to a specific area and require you to surrender your passport.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 3142 – Release or Detention of a Defendant Pending Trial Even without those conditions, federal regulations let the State Department refuse a passport if you’re the subject of an outstanding federal or state felony warrant, or if you’re under a court order, probation condition, or parole condition that prohibits you from leaving the country.12eCFR. 22 CFR 51.60 – Denial and Restriction of Passports
For non-citizens, open charges create additional risk. Visa and green card applications require disclosure of any arrests or criminal charges, and certain offenses can trigger inadmissibility. Even if the charges are later dropped, their existence must typically still be disclosed on immigration applications.
Voting
Open charges generally don’t affect voting rights. Across the United States, the right to vote is tied to conviction status, not pending charges. If you haven’t been convicted, you keep the right to vote. Some people with open cases assume they’ve lost that right and stay home on election day, but they don’t need to.
How Open Charges End
A case stops being open when it reaches a final disposition. There are a few paths to that point.
A conviction happens when you plead guilty or a judge or jury finds you guilty after trial. The case then moves to sentencing.
An acquittal happens when the judge or jury finds you not guilty. Double jeopardy protections mean the government cannot retry you for the same offense.
A dismissal happens when the prosecutor drops the charges or the court dismisses them, often for insufficient evidence, procedural problems, or a speedy trial violation. A dismissal “with prejudice” bars refiling; “without prejudice” leaves the door open as long as the statute of limitations hasn’t run out.
A plea bargain resolves the majority of criminal cases. You plead guilty, often to a less serious charge than what was originally filed, in exchange for a lighter sentence or the dropping of other counts. Once the judge accepts the plea, the case is resolved.
Pretrial diversion is available in some cases, usually for first-time offenders and lower-level offenses. You complete requirements such as community service, counseling, or a period of supervised behavior, and if you finish successfully the charges may be reduced or dismissed. If you don’t complete it, the case returns to the normal track.13United States Department of Justice. 9-22.000 – Pretrial Diversion Program
What Stays on Your Record
Even after charges resolve in your favor, whether by dismissal, acquittal, or successful diversion, the arrest and charge records don’t automatically disappear. They can still show up on background checks for up to seven years from the date of the charge.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports Many jurisdictions let you petition to expunge or seal the record, which removes it from public view and most background checks. Eligibility depends on the jurisdiction, the type of charge, and how the case ended. Dismissals and acquittals generally give you a stronger case for expungement than a plea to a lesser offense.