The Grand Jury Witness

AuthorDaniel Small
ProfessionIs a partner in the Boston and Miami of ces of Holland & Knight LLP
Pages157-162
The challenges of being a grand jury witness can be far more complexand
far more frightening than those of most other witness situations. The
power of the grand jury, its secrecy, the varying roles of counsel, and other
factors all contribute to a dangerous environment for a witness. Worse yet,
the rules and procedures surrounding the grand jury may vary signicantly
from one jurisdiction to another. For purposes of this chapter, we will use
the federal system as the widest common denominator and the model for
some state systems. However, counsel and witness must become familiar
with local rules.
As a general matter, a grand jury is a group of citizens, chosen at random
like a trial jury, but with no involvement by counsel. In the federal system,
there are 23 members of a grand jury and they sit for 18 months, but the
frequency can vary widely—it may be once a week, once a month, or some
other time frame. No judge is present. The grand jury has two general
purposes—investigation and screening—that are worth addressing briey.
General Purposes of the Grand Jury
Investiga tion
The grand jury has broad powers to subpoena people and documents that
may be relevant to possible violations of federal law. As federal laws have
expanded over the years, so has the grand jury’s jurisdiction. Once subpoe-
naed, a witness can be asked a wide range of questions. Although this all
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Chapter 27
The Grand Jury Witness
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