Venue refers to the location of a criminal trial. In most cases, venue is noncontroversial, but in some instances it may be the subject of pretrial proceedings before a judge. Venue is in the first instance selected by the prosecutor, who (in a federal case) files charges in the district where the trial will take place. (As noted in Chapter 2.A.2, a district is an administrative subdivision of the federal courts, and some bigger states may have more than one federal district within their borders.) A defendant may seek a change of venue for several reasons.

The Sixth Amendment to the Constitution provides that a federal trial must occur in the state and district where a crime was committed. Venue must be proper for each count of an indictment or information. Defendants can waive venue either expressly or by failing to make a timely objection before trial.