Grand juries becoming a 'major stumbling block for Trump'

In the United States, jury duty can come in two different forms: state and federal. Many Americans who are called for state jury duty repeatedly say they have never been called for federal jury duty.

At the federal level, jurors are empaneled in cases being prosecuted by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

Politico legal reporter Josh Gerstein, in an article published on January 7, stresses that federal grand juries are making a major "comeback" during Donald Trump's second presidency — but aren't necessarily sympathetic to his legal agenda.

Grand juries, Gerstein notes, were "written off, for decades, as a pointless anachronism." But that isn't the case now, according to the Politico reporter.

"Grand juries have emerged as a major stumbling block for Trump's drive to use the criminal courts to exact retribution on his perceived political foes," Gerstein explains. "Federal grand juries operate in near-total secrecy and decide whether prosecutors can bring a criminal indictment in the first place. Unlike trial juries, they don't need to be unanimous; rather, a majority of their 16 to 23 members must agree to return an indictment. And their only job is to determine if the Justice Department has brought a plausible case — a relatively low standard which led to the cliche that prosecutors could get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich."

Gerstein continues, "But in the Trump era, grand juries are no longer a rubber stamp. Instead, they've become a headache for prosecutors trying to advance controversial Trump policies like mass deportations and militarizing law enforcement."

The Politico journalist notes that grand juries in Chicago, Los Angeles, and other major U.S. cities have "rebuffed federal prosecutors recently." And grand juries, Gerstein observes, "have derailed or impeded prosecutions" of Trump foes who include New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.

Liz Oyer, a former pardon attorney fired by the Trump DOJ in March, told Politico, "We are now realizing the power that we have as individual citizens. When we see things like grand juries voting not to return an indictment, it is an important reminder that we, the citizens, all have power to resist and push back and to save our democracy."

Read Josh Gerstein's full article for Politico at this link.