‘D.A. Sees Grand Jury as Newest Crime Weapon’: Jurors Already Have Active Role

Don’t let the district attorney turn the Orange County Grand Jury into a weapon. The grand jury was born in civil war to protect people from a despotic government. The grand jury had its beginnings in the Magna Charta, which protected the English nobility from an oppressive king. The Bill of Rights to our Constitution extended this protection from tyranny to you and me.

To protect us, the grand jury has been given extraordinary power to inquire into our lives: powers to look at your bank statements, your telephone records and even to compel you to testify under pain of imprisonment--powers that the U.S. Bill of Rights keeps from the district and U.S. attorneys.

If the district attorney wants to look at your bank records, he must convince a judge that there’s other evidence that you may have committed a crime. The grand jury needs only to ask for the information. The California Constitution adds to this power by requiring the grand jury to look into government agencies.

The Times says the D.A. wants to use the federal grand jury as a model. I was a federal grand juror, and the jury that I was on was used as a near-ignorant tool of the U.S. attorney. The power of the grand jury was what was wanted.

Subpoenas were issued in the name of the grand jury without the knowledge or authorization of the grand jury. Thirty minutes per indictment was the norm. I believe the U.S. attorney wanted to get the job done at the least cost.

But using the grand jury in this manner is a perversion of the Bill of Rights. A corrupt government attorney could use the grand jury for political ends.

H.A. McDONNEL

Fullerton