"BEHIND THE BARS" SERIES: A JURY OF YOUR PEERS--INTERVIEW WITH A FORMER GRAND JUROR (PART I)
When we think of a jury presiding over a trial, we usually think of images relating to like the trials of O.J. Simpson and the Menendez brothers--the silent faces and voices that are present and forced to endure hours, days, weeks, and possibly months of testimony in a criminal case. But not all juries in the American judicial system are like those we commonly see on your more famous lawyer shows like "Matlock" and "Perry Mason". In fact, there is at least one jury that a defendant may have to see before he goes before an actual jury. It never gives a verdict and never sets punishment. But it has more power in some ways than even a judge or EVEN a district attorney--and it has a lot to say about if a case should even be brought to court in the first place.
How do I know about this? Because I recently was required to serve on one--and now that I am free to talk about it, WE NOW GIVE YOU A SUITE 101.COM EXCLUSIVE BY PUTTING YOU IN A JURY OF YOUR PEERS!!! No, it is not the jury you see on TV, but the grand jury that we will be talking about the next couple of weeks. To help me do this, I will be switching sides of this mic and become the interviewee with the help of fellow Suite 101.com Contributing Editors Traute Klein (Natural Health), Christina Coruth (New Hampshire), and others to help you get an insider's look at life in the grand jury room that should be a very revealing picture of what goes on in one part of the criminal justice system in Texas.
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Suite 101 (TK): I am pretty ignorant in questions of law, especially criminal law. So tell us--what exactly is a grand jury? Is it a jury in a criminal case?
Holley: Just keep in mind that I was a GRAND JUROR--NOT a juror in a trial that you would normally think of. After a suspect is arrested for a charge by a law enforcement official, he or she is then arraigned (i.e.--meaning basically that a certain fee called a bond is set that must be paid by that person to be released from jail pending trial) by a justice of the peace and officially deemed in custody. At that point, after all evidence and work that will allow a duly sworn law enforcement official has been done, the case is turned over to the appropriate court of jurisdiction [(Ex.) Minor violations and misdeameanors in
