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Terms Used In Maryland Code, CRIMINAL LAW 10-502

  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Indictment: The formal charge issued by a grand jury stating that there is enough evidence that the defendant committed the crime to justify having a trial; it is used primarily for felonies.
  • Person: includes an individual, receiver, trustee, guardian, personal representative, fiduciary, representative of any kind, corporation, partnership, business trust, statutory trust, limited liability company, firm, association, or other nongovernmental entity. See
  • state: means :

    (1) a state, possession, territory, or commonwealth of the United States; or

    (2) the District of Columbia. See
(a) This section does not apply to a person if:

(1) the person’s previous lawful spouse has been absent from the person for a continuous period of 7 years; and

(2) the person does not know whether the person’s previous lawful spouse is living at the time of the subsequent marriage ceremony.

(b) While lawfully married to a living person, a person may not enter into a marriage ceremony with another.

(c) A person who violates this section is guilty of the felony of bigamy and on conviction is subject to imprisonment not exceeding 9 years.

(d) An indictment or warrant for bigamy is sufficient if it substantially states:

“(name of defendant) on (date), in (county), having a living spouse, feloniously entered into a marriage ceremony with (name of subsequent spouse), in violation of § 10-502 of the Criminal Law Article, against the peace, government, and dignity of the State.”.