Legal Analysis of Bills to Ban 'Pick-a-Pal' Grand Jury
The Texas Senate passed a bill to prohibit judges from using the so-called pick-a-pal method to choose a grand jury.
March 26, 2015 at 09:00 AM
4 minute read
The Texas Senate unanimously passed a bill that would prohibit judges from using the so-called pick-a-pal method to choose a grand jury. A nearly identical companion bill is pending in the Texas House.
Texas Lawyer asked a judge, a prosecutor and a criminal defense lawyer to analyze the impact that the proposal might have on the state's criminal justice system. Grand juries hear prosecutors present evidence of alleged felony crimes, determine if probable cause exists and either indict or no-bill the accused person.
The engrossed Senate Bill 135 and pending House Bill 282 would prohibit a judge from using one of two current grand jury selection methods. Judges would not be able to appoint commissioners who recruit potential grand jurors. Instead, judges would have to call a jury pool, as they do for trial juries, and pick 12 grand jurors and two alternates.
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