codefendant

noun

co·​de·​fen·​dant ˌkō-di-ˈfen-dənt How to pronounce codefendant (audio)
 in legal circles often  -ˌdant
variants or co-defendant
plural codefendants or co-defendants
: a defendant in the same lawsuit or criminal prosecution as another defendant or group of defendants : a joint defendant
… the defendant argued that it was plain error for the trial court to have permitted the prosecution to treat his co-defendant as hostile …State v. Saenz, 370 P.3d 1278 (2016)

Examples of codefendant in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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The trial for Williams and five codefendants began in November 2023 and concluded in December 2024. Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 7 Feb. 2025 Russell and his codefendant, Sarah Beth Clendaniel, of Catonsville, planned to shoot at several power substations in the Baltimore area, according to prosecutors. Racquel Bazos, Baltimore Sun, 4 Feb. 2025 Bannon was first indicted in connection to the sham charity in August 2020, when federal prosecutors charged him and three codefendants with defrauding donors. Justin Gest, Newsweek, 11 Feb. 2025 Judges on the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Trump codefendants' bid to further enjoin prosecutors from releasing the report. Robert Legare, CBS News, 11 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for codefendant

Word History

First Known Use

1641, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of codefendant was in 1641

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Cite this Entry

“Codefendant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/codefendant. Accessed 18 Mar. 2025.

Legal Definition

codefendant

noun
co·​de·​fen·​dant
ˌkō-di-ˈfen-dənt, -ˌdant
: a joint defendant

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