Michael Jackson Indicted (sp)

[Marcus Telcontar]

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/04/22/1082530281039.html

Now. Someone please explain a Grand Jury to me and how it works. Is this like a Comittal hearing, where a Judge will look at prosecution evidence to see if it's valid enough to send a case to trail?

[Jedi Master Carr]

Not really, it is where a Prosecuter picks 12 (I think its 12) jurors and then puts them in a courtroom, there is no judge, no defense attorney and the accused isn't there either. The prosecutor can say just about anything he wants and puts any witness on the stand. It is very easy to get some indicted by a grand jury, there was an old joke that a DA could get a Ham Sandwich indicted by a Grand Jury.

[CMJ]

Grand Juries typically sit for a specific period of time(like a couple of weeks say). In that time they decide whether to indict all the cases that come before their jurisdiction.

I believe that's why they're called a "Grand" Jury.

[Jedi Master Carr]

Well I had forgotten how exactly it worked, I also think it varies somewhat from state to state. Some states don't even allow Grand Juries I think.

[Chastity Maundrell]

Getting indicted is one thing - convicted is another. I know that the news reports are the only thing the public has to go on with the accusations about Michael Jackson being a pedophile, but from the things that have been reported in the past and current - I hope to hear he's convicted and that he actually serves time in prison.

PS: A grand jury is a jury of 12 to 23 persons convened in a private session to evaluate accusations against a person ( or persons ) charged with a crime and to determine whether the evidence warrants a bill of indictment. Sometimes its also called a grand inquest.