Pinson v. City of Birmingham

On Rehearing.

The “due process of law,” provided by the Constitution, contemplates, in a criminal prosecution, a legal and valid accusation, whether by affidavit and complaint, or by indictment ; and the accused is called upon to answer only the specific charge therein contained. It is the settled law, long established, that every person accused of crime has the right to be informed of the nature of the accusation against him. This right requires that the offense must be set out with clearness and all necessary certainty to apprise the accused of the crime of which he stands charged. Even a…