Source: Washington Post
by Paul Butler
“As a prosecutor, I appeared many times before grand juries. Honestly, it was like a spa day. Prosecutors are officially ‘legal advisers’ to the grand jury but, as a practical matter, we run the show. Defense attorneys are not allowed in the room, and even if we are aware of evidence suggesting a suspect might be innocent, we’re not legally required to present it. It’s a mini-trial, but without the inconvenience of a defense, judge or high burden of proof. To say that it’s rare for a grand jury to decline to indict would be a gross understatement. In 25 years at the U.S. Justice Department, former U.S. attorney Joyce Vance never saw it in any her cases, nor did law professor Randall Eliason in his 12 years as a federal prosecutor. But it happened seven times in recent weeks in D.C.” (09/04/25)