Have you ever been on a Grand Jury?

[dreamshark]

Or been summoned for one? Or known anyone who has been summoned for a Grand Jury? Well, now you do!

Richard got a Grand Jury Summons on Wednesday. Which he immediately declined (something you have the option to do if you are over 70). I kept trying to convince him that he should at least think it over with completely ineffective arguments like, "You get to see inside the most top secret law enforcement proceeding in America! You might get to decide whether or not to prosecute a murder case! Maybe even a police shooting! You can meet Mike Freeman! " This worked about as well as people trying to convince me that I would enjoy a cruise with arguments that have the exact opposite of the intended effect ("It's like being inside a huge floating hotel for 3 weeks! You can spend the day lying by a swimming pool in the blazing sun! You can see Las Vegas night club acts every night!")

However, Lena thought it sounded great, especially after I explained what a Grand Jury actually does. I started making up an example about a murder in an alley and next thing I knew we were playing a lively game of Grand Jury with Lena playing all the witnesses. Thorin eventually joined me on the jury and Richard played a cameo as the County Attorney to remind us of the name of the victim (Mr. Body. Anthony Body).

Here Lena (carrying a briefcase to indicate that she is a legitimate office worker) is recalling some details about a shady coworker (Mr. Bell) that she suspects of being involved in the crime. He had a creepy smile (especially on Tuesdays) and she had observed him using a computer that he wasn't supposed to use for suspicious activities during work hours. What suspicious activities? Oh... making notes. And lists of potential victims. Other witnesses placed a bearded man known as The Bell at the scene of the murder. Then we called a witness that confirmed that the creepy Mr. Bell was also known as THE Bell. The plot thickened to include some sentient animals (ducks with typewriters) but that appeared to be a red herring. In the end we indicted Mr. Bell.

 t

Comments

[chasophonic]

The County Attorney's office decides which cases to bring before the Gand Jury. All of them are investigatory given that we could ask questions of witnesses. The one solely investigative case brought a witness before us who wound up (as hoped) giving crucial information that hadn't come out in their police statements.

Note: This is not a trial. It is a process of getting information on record to proceed to trial. The ACA and 23 jurors question witnesses. No defense attorney is present. The accused are present only if they testify. The jury then deliberates and decides whether to indict.

We can talk about this more sometime.