Grand Jury: A Letter to the Judge

I was summoned to appear before the judge, and as a relatively new resident of this small California county, I had no idea of what to expect.
Since moving to these rural foothills, I was certainly out of the habit of "dressing up" much.

Many people who live here go to big occasions, like Sunday Services and holiday parties, in their blue jeans and tee shirts. Granted, they usually wear their clean, newer jeans and tees for such special occasions.

This occasion would be just me and the judge. It seemed like I should wear a nice conservative skirt and blouse. It just seemed like the respectfully right thing to do. I'd never had a meeting with a superior court judge before. I was on time-- a little early, and summoned to the judge's office on the second floor of the 150 year old courthouse at the appointed time.

The judge was cordial and friendly, but businesslike. He was younger than me, nice looking and not the least bit judgemental in his attitude. I don't remember what we really talked about, and it was probably only a twenty minute conversation at the most, but It turned out that I would be one of the chosen ones.

I would serve on the county Grand Jury that year, and the next. I would be part of a citizens group having "broad powers" including the right and duty to investigate and report upon the conduct of local government.

In some places, the Grand Jury is a group of citizens which decides if there is enough evidence to bring charges against an accused wrongdoer. It also usually keeps an eye on local officials and local government agencies.

It is not a trial jury. It has authority to investigate matters submitted by concerned citizens who think an official or local government agency is acting improperly in performing official duties. It has the right to summon individuals to hearings and take depositions.

The California Grand jury system operates in all 58 counties of the state, acting as a watchdog over county governments.


In theory, it still may indict someone for a criminal offense, but in fact , felonies are more often brought to trial by a district attorney. The grand jury generally gives its attention to local government matters including the oversight of detention facilities and jails.

I was surprised, as we went about our duties, that the most important people in the county gave us so much deference and respect. Usually we went to various heads of departments in groups of two or three and asked for face to face meetings with busy people who were obliged to answer our questions and furnish requested documents. We tried not to reveal our personal amazement when we were always treated with dignity, respect and deference-- even by the busiest people.


By law, I cannot reveal details of the procedures and conversations relating to problems and requests we received and dealt with, but I will say it was an interesting look into the workings of local government.

If you are ever called to serve on a Grand Jury, I would say that is a very interesting experience. Don't tell the group you are a writer of any sort or they will try to make you the Secretary. I told them that writers are not secretaries-- that in fact, they NEED secretaries. Another nice lady did a very nice job of the the meeting minutes, making it much easier for me to write the final reports.

I can say that, as a group we affected some small positive improvements on a few local government operations.  At the end of each grand jury term, a published public Final Report is issued. Copies of it go to the local media, the public library and to all of the parties involved.
 The report lists the results of various investigations, and offers  findings actions and reccomendations for the improvement of various procedures and policies. The law requires that a public response be given to each of the recommendations.

 The public report reveals that we dealt with County Counsel, County Auditor, Sheriff's Department, board of Education, and the Board of Supervisors among others.
We addressed  and investigated issues of nepotism, jail security,  school bus safety, auditing fiscal resources, refund of overcharged taxes, excessive force complaints against a law enforcemt deputy,  alleged use of influence for personal gain and proved that a high official was skimming county funds in small amounts, into his own pocket.

Dear Judge M________, (Names and initials changed)

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve as a County Grand Jury member for the past two terms.

Being summoned to public service educed the usual conflicts. I knew that "someone" has to serve for the general good of the community. I also know that this privilege not given by some societies (where neither of us would wish to live).

Cynically considering that my service might not benefit anyone, I also knew I could learn something from the experience. So my "willingness to serve" was not totally selfless. I am fairly well informed, though that claim seems contradictory to my confession that I really didn't know what a Grand Jury was.

In this case, I found that a Grand Jury is a group of reasonable, thoughtful, forthright people with the objective of helping their local government serve people in an honest and fair manner. As individuals, we were VERY different in many ways, but in this one objective we were similar. We came to respect each other for that common purpose.

We had different political views and an age range that spanned a few decades. We had varied economic, political, and educational levels. Some had deep roots in the county; others were recently transplanted. Our life experiences and talents were diverse and complimentary. Perhaps one of the best "similarities" we had was the ability to listen to each other and to consider viewpoints from a background that was
unlike our own. I personally felt a connection to each of them in different ways.

There were conflicting views, incongruous approaches, and even a hint of personal disdain between some parties. However, none of this interfered with our work, and the differing viewpoints only caused us to think more critically about our actions in order to reach a consensus
of decision. I know we didn't do anything "earth-shaking", but I think you would have been happy to see that both groups interacted in an amazingly civilized, committed and good-natured manner.

I have to say, that as a judge of people (which you quiteliterally are) you seem to have a talent for picking individuals who have a certain intangible quality of decency and integrity. It is an odd thing to come into a group of strangers who seem, on the surface, to be rather unlikely associates. I'm sure we all entered wondering how we might
become a "body".

I have come away from the experience feeling very lucky to know these people (some of whom I would never have otherwise met) and happy to know that they live in this county.

When I met you in person, you commented that I had a "good handshake". I'm sure you must have other selection standards. Whatever they are, they are credible.

A couple of years back, I was on a walking tour of local historic
sites with L____ R____. Our group happened
to encounter retired Judge C_____ who was strolling down the street. L_____ introduced him to the group. The Judge proceeded to give us some historical information, before asking where we were from. Though some of us were new to the area, we all were local residents. He seemed surprised.

It made me think that judges are not as likely to be familiar with some of the ordinary, respectable elements of our community. I'm sure that is not completely true, but obviously and thankfully, none of us had stood before him in a formal encounter.

We congratulated each other for the fact that the judge didn't recognize anyone...... except L_____, our tour guide. (We didn't infer anything from this.)

In your profession, I know you meet many citizens who represent the nethermost levels of society as well as the unfortunate victims, yet you are certainly well aware of the other side. ... (Us.)

I would like you to know that the orientation given by the trainer, was very helpful and practical. You may recall that our first group had no holdovers from the previous jury. Nevertheless, the excellent instruction gave us useful guidelines, and the necessary confidence to
proceed. There were numerous occasions when we found ourselves
reminding each other about the points he had brought to our
attention. about what we should and should not be doing.

Going back to one of my original thoughts, I knew I might meet some people who who were interesting, both on the jury and in the investigations. This turned out to be true. I have been very blessed in having the opportunity of meeting so many intriguing, creative, incredible people in my exploits as a local feature writer.

I'm sure the personal contacts I have made through the Grand Jury will continue to be sources of information and inspiration.


Again, I thank you for allowing me the opportunity to serve
on the Grand Jury.

Respectful regards,