Dying democracy chronicles: Grand juries

A NYT article reports about one of the last vestiges of meaningful power still standing in opposition to Trump and MAGA authoritarianism and kleptocracy, i.e., grand juries. People on grand juries are resisting authoritarian MAGA overreach. Specifically, federal grand juries in Washington DC have refused to indict defendants at least six times in recent weeks. That is extraordinary. Legal experts describe as virtually unprecedented. Former federal prosecutor Brendan Ballou, who served until January 2025, stated: "Not only have I never heard of this happening, I've never heard of a prosecutor who's heard of this happening" 

In the "Sandwich Man" Case, Grand juries rejected felony charges against Sean Dunn, a former DOJ paralegal who threw a hoagie at a federal agent while shouting "I don't want you in my city!" Dunn is a symbol of resistance in DC. The open question is how widespread is grand jury resistance likely to be. Red states are likely going to be more open to authoritarian moves like sending in troops to quell fake emergencies than blue states. Some reporting hints that may be the case.

Grand jury resistance to djt and his dictatorship is likely going to vary widely by location. Grand jury reach is limited by location and its jurisdiction. 

To nullify grand jury resistance to dictatorship, MAGA prosecutors can re-presenting cases to new grand juries until they find one willing to indict. There's no legal prohibition against "grand jury shopping". Prosecutors can keep trying with new panels of jurors, and that is probably what MAGA thugs will do.

Another way to weaken grand juries is for bad faith MAGA prosecutors to flood the zone with shit. Prosecutors can manipulate the evidence any way they want, including presenting all kinds of complexity and confusion. Grand jurors, like other people can be bamboozled, deceived and tricked into indicting someone on crappy evidence. Also, bad faith prosecutors, which MAGA prosecutors are, can legally withhold exculpatory evidence. The Supreme Court ruled in US v. Williams (1992) that prosecutors have no obligation to present evidence favorable to defendants. Even worse, bad faith prosecutors can present hearsay evidence from alleged witnesses without personal knowledge.

That is how weak the grand jury system actually is. It works based on good faith and good will. MAGA is pure bad faith and ill-will. Given how rigged the system is against him, it's a miracle that the grand jury refused to indict the sandwich dude for his heinous sandwich-tossing crime.