Today’s column continues a discussion of the problems with the application and enforcement of the Pennsylvania Grand Jury Act, which was initially outlined in my Jan. 20 column in The Legal, “Suggested Changes for Federal, State Criminal Procedure in 2015.”
A comparison to the federal grand jury is necessary for this discussion. As I said in my prior column, there is a substantial body of law dealing with the federal grand jury that is known by judges, prosecutors and the defense bar. Although the federal grand jury is not a monument of procedural rights, there are substantial protections that the courts will enforce and prosecutors know better than to attempt to minimize. Although we are dealing with Pennsylvania law, the operation of the Pennsylvania grand jury should closely follow the well-known and proven federal procedure that has been under scrutiny for over 50 years. Federal prosecutors are required to bring all felony charges by grand jury indictment, and are very successful in doing so, while still playing by the well-established rules.
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