William J. Campbell Quote

"Today the grand jury is the total captive of the prosecutor
who, if he is candid, will concede that he can indict anybody,
at any time, for almost anything, before any grand jury."

by:	William J. Campbell (1905-1988) United States federal judge, longest serving Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
Source:	Newsweek, 22 August 1977
Rating:
Categories:	Authority, Corruption, Crime, Fear, Hypocrisy, Integrity, Jury, Justice, Law, Liberty, Power, Totalitarian, Tyranny, Usurpation
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By way of brief example: I know of one case where there were 7 cases presented to a grand jury and just the first one was heard by lunch. The prosecutor told the grand jury that was his weakest case and they should just sign off on the rest. Consequently the grand jury signed off on all cases and went to lunch. Two of the cases hadn't even been sufficiently put together enough to carry a statutory infraction.  -- Mike, Norwalk      2
God Bless America  -- Me Again
-- Anonymous
Of course a prosecutor can use his grand jury, to "indict anyone, at any time, for almost anything" ...if he thinks there is enough evidence in a plaintiff's claim to bring it to trial, but it still remains for a jury of peers to convict.  -- Jack, Green, OH      1 1
Better to be judged by twelve than carried by six. Nevertheless, being judged by a jury is no sure thing either. Juries can be manipulated easily as well. I sat on a jury once that ten of the twelve jurors were employees or agents of various government agencies, mostly because government employees are the only people who usually don't try to get out of jury duty. Essentially, the accused was prosecuted, judged, and sentenced by government.  -- Ken, Allyn, WA      2
A grand jury does not convict anyone, or even judge guilt or innocence. It investigates if there is enough evidence to try in court. It merely indicts. Only a trial court can convict, no matter how many jurors, if any..  -- Jack, Green, OH      1
A passage from Atlas Shrugged seems to explain today's "Justice" system: “Did you really think we want those laws observed?" said Dr. Ferris. "We want them to be broken. You'd better get it straight that it's not a bunch of boy scouts you're up against... We're after power and we mean it... There's no way to rule innocent men. The only power any government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren't enough criminals one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws. Who wants a nation of law-abiding citizens? What's there in that for anyone? But just pass the kind of laws that can neither be observed nor enforced or objectively interpreted – and you create a nation of law-breakers – and then you cash in on guilt. Now that's the system, Mr. Reardon, that's the game, and once you understand it, you'll be much easier to deal with.” ― Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged  -- J Carlton, Calgary      3
'indict anyone he wants' did not work very well when my mom (at age 60) sat on the Grand Jury. They were trying to indict a guy for some drug charge where there were numerous co-conspirators, all of whom were cops. By the time she was done, mom had the jury ready to indict the cops and thank the perpetrator. Doubtful she will be called again...  -- TheMANwithNoName, Tampa, FL      3
Good for your mother, TheMANwithNoName! Citizens need to be more vigilant and less trusting of government employees and demand that the government follow due process -- it is the only check that lies completely with the people at all times-- you don't have to wait for the next election.  -- E Archer, NYC      2
As is said, a prosecutor can get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich. And they can get as many grand juries as necessary to get an indictment.  -- jim k, Austin, Tx      2
I think the People need to get busy and make all Public Employees accountable for their failure to honor their Oath of Office and the Constitution of the united States of America and the State Constitution with their domestic treason. Ignorance of the Law is no excuse, especially for a Public Employee. Juries have no business being in judgment of anyone if they do not know their job (Juror's Handbook).  -- LC, Texas      1
A perfect portrayal of the corruption of legal authority. Indict the prosecutors for abuse of the powers of their offices.  -- Patrick Henry, Red Hill      2
So how come Hillary and company have never had to face grand juries for their obvious crimes, while charges keep coming for insignificant players connected to Trump?  The game has been rigged for a long time. Mike, I've heard that anyone can form a grand jury and bring the case to the Sheriff.  Do you know anything about the process?  -- E Archer, NYC
TheMANwithNoName, Tampa, FL - Kudos to your wonderful mother!  -- Mary - MI
Archer, I've been involved in 2 such common law / Constitutionally related grand jury creations. That's been almost 35 years ago so many of the specifics escape me. I remember it was fairly simple. We used small county court houses with friendly sheriffs. We used some of Sheriff Mac's information, a called common law court and simply used / adapted federal rules complete/in harmony with local county's procedures (county to county vary) to accomplish the act - start to finish (using our own people and information/evidence). We also used the services of a justice of the peace. Today, some States with notary public / justice of the peace officers would probably be the easiest. I can address more if you like.  -- Mike, Norwalk
A grand jury indictment is focused on major crimes. For misdemeanors and minor offenses, the instrument used is called an: "Information". In "ALL" ! ! ! minor offenses, an "Information" is required the same as a grand jury indictment to get an individual into court. Procedure on "Information(s)" is a greatly overlooked legalism that liberty loving sovereigns - know almost nothing about. Without a prosecutor going to a competent authority judge (demonstrating there is sufficient corpus delectii evidence for a court action) and the judge issuing a court date, etc., etc., etc. there is no issue before the court to plead to - on traffic tickets or other minor crimes. I suppose there are State by State variations and outright differences - while the rule of procedure remains a lot similar.  -- Mike, Norwalk
We once held a moot court concerning a government agent. We had attorneys act as prosecutor, defense and judge. We advertised in the news paper, radio and other media seeking individuals who had verifiable complaints against the agent. We even did moot summonses just for fun. It was unbelievable the number of people that showed up to share their horror stories against the agent. The State rules of procedure for courts were followed as close as possible to ensure what came out could be used later. NOW, that would have been some great information for a people's grand jury. ;-).  -- Mike, Norwalk
Thanks, Mike.  What is preventing citizens from forming a grand jury to indict the Clinton's for their very apparent crimes?  From what I understand, grand juries in Washington DC are used, and are typically loaded with people who work for the government directly or indirectly and are very liberal, and they can be talked into indicting just about anyone — it is the judge that serves as a check, and with liberal judges everywhere, 'due process' merely is that which empowers the progressive agenda.  If we have to wait for the government to check itself, it will never happen...  -- E Archer, NYC
Jack, your ignorance concerning how third world / banana republic corrupt the occupying statist theocracy infesting this land's courts are. From personal experience, I could even go into a friend's situation where 2 grand juries turned his case down so he went into court (without a previous grand jury) and was charged with a non-related statute that had expired. After he was convicted — three (3) court records were sought for an appeal; AND, none were even close to each other.  -- Mike, Norwalk      1
We need to stop playing court, and bring the real threats to our lives into the courtroom. Marijuana use, alcohol consumption, homosexuality, religion, pornography, medical professionals and procedures, beastiality, etc..,etc. The system is guilty of not performing humanely and needs to be corrected. The system not the individual. The individual is innocent by reason of sanity.  -- Fredrick William Sillik, Anytown

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