The 6th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury in all criminal prosecutions, and the right to have the “Assistance of Counsel for the defence.”
This constitutional mandate is binding on all U.S. courts. To that end, courts have fashioned procedures and timelines to ensure that every criminal defendant gets his or her day in court on a speedy basis.
For example, after an arrest, a suspect must be taken before a judge within 48 hours to have the charges read and to enter a plea (the arraignment). In felony cases the defendant must have a preliminary hearing within 10 court days of the arraignment; the prosecution must present witnesses sufficient to show a strong suspicion the defendant has committed a felony. A second arraignment is held on that information, with a pleading filed that lays out the charges; the jury trial must be held within 60 days of that arraignment. That’s pretty speedy.