Grand juror sues Robert McCulloch, says he mischaracterized the Darren Wilson case
theGRIO REPORT - One of the grand jurors involved in the Darren Wilson case is now suing St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch for the way he characterized the Wilson case.
One of the grand jurors involved in the Darren Wilson case is now suing St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch for the way he characterized the Wilson case.
Specifically, the grand juror, named only as “Grand Juror Doe” has a problem with the release of information and the way the case was discussed publicly, reports St. Louis Public Radio.
“In [the grand juror]’s view, the current information available about the grand jurors’ views is not entirely accurate — especially the implication that all grand jurors believed that there was no support for any charges,” the lawsuit says. “Moreover, the public characterization of the grand jurors’ view of witnesses and evidence does not accord with [Doe]’s own.”
“From [the grand juror]’s perspective, the investigation of Wilson had a stronger focus on the victim than in other cases presented to the grand jury.”
The juror continues to say that the legal standards of the case were given to the jury in a “muddled” and “untimely” manner.
Although prohibited by law from talking about the proceedings of the case, this juror feels that the secrecy is actually hurting the way the case itself is viewed. “From [Doe]’s perspective, although the release of a large number of records provides an appearance of transparency, with heavy redactions and the absence of context, those records do not fully portray the proceedings before the grand jury,” the lawsuit says.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri has asked a judge to prohibit the threat of laws requiring jurors’ silence in this particular matter (otherwise, the juror could be charged with a misdemeanor). The lawsuit claims that “any interests furthered by maintaining grand jury secrecy are outweighed by the interests secured by the First Amendment.”
