NEW YORK — New York’s chief judge proposed legislation Tuesday to open grand jury records when the cases have been determined to be of public interest.
Judge Jonathan Lippman announced the legislation amidst other proposals in his 2015 State of the Judiciary Address Tuesday.
Lippman's recommendation directly addresses the current effort by the Public Advocate and news organizations to get a judge to release the grand jury records involving Officer Daniel Pantaleo, the police officer caught on tape putting Eric Garner in a chokehold. A grand jury ultimately failed to indict the officer for the Staten Island man's death.
Grand jury secrecy protects reluctant witnesses, the grand jury’s investigation and the defendant if he or she is not indicted, according to the chief judge. But, Lippman said, in some instances, secrecy breeds mistrust from the public in the court system.
“In cases of significant public interest, secrecy does not further the principles it is designed to protect but, in fact, significantly impedes fair comment and understanding of the court process,” he wrote.
Lippman's legislation would allow limited public access to grand jury records when there is a dismissal of charges, if the judge determines the records are in the public's interest.
In another nod to the Eric Garner case, Lippman proposed that judges should play a more active role when defendants are police officers. Critics say prosecutors normally work so closely with police, that it makes it challenging to objectively present the facts against an officer.
“To me, it is obvious that we need significant change in grand jury practices and protocols in the world we live in today,” Lippman wrote.
As it stands, judges supervise grand jury proceedings and provide basic legal instruction. Lippman proposed a more active role for judges when defendants are police officers.
“The judge would be present to provide legal rulings, ask questions of witnesses, decide along with the grand jurors whether additional witnesses should be called to testify, preclude inadmissible evidence or improper questions, and provide final legal instructions before the grand jury deliberates,” Lippman wrote.
