Principles And History Of Grand Jury System

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27490, 26 October 1954, Page 6

Principles And History Of Grand Jury System

“You swear by Almighty God that you, as foreman of this Grand Inquest, will diligently inquire and true presentment make of all such matters and things as shall be given you in charge. The Queen’s counsel your fellows and your own you will keep secret. You will present no-one for envy hatred or malice. Neither will you leave anyone unpresented for fear favour affection gain reward or hope thereof but will present all things truly as they come to your knowledge according to the best -of your understanding.” When the Registrar administers that oath to the foreman of the grand jury at the opening of the Supreme Court session in Christchurch today, he will be following a procedure that traces back nearly 1100 years in English legal history to the institutions of King Ethelred in 866. In New Zealand the sheriff of each district must empanel not fewer than 24 and not more than 30 for the grand jury before the session opens. At the opening of the session the names are put in a revolving box and well mixed. From this panel the Registrar draws not more than 23 names or a lesser number to a minimum of 12. A grand jury cannot return a true bill, or a no bill, unless at least 12 are of one mind. Thus, if there are 23 on a grand jury a bill can be returned by a majority of 12 to 11. If the number on the grand jury should be fewer than 23 the majority would increase until, if there were only 12, the decision would have to be unanimous.

This principle of 12 having to be of one mind was definitely established in the Clyncard case in 1599 in the reign of the first Queen Elizabeth. This man was indicted by a grand jury: “On the oath of A, B, C, and others, the number not being stated. It appeared that it was not on the oath of

12, for if it were presented by a lesser number it was clearly ill. Wherefore it was reversed,” says the report of the case.

The principle has been reaffirmed in later years, in his Commentaries on the Laws of England, published in 1791, Sir William Blackstone says: “The sheriff of every county shall summon 24 good and lawful men of the county . . . as many as appear upon this panel are sworn upon the grand jury to the amount of 12 at the least and not more than 23 that 12 may be a majority. Which number as well as the constitution itself we find exactly described so early as the laws of King Ethelred.” The author then quotes the Latin extract from the law of King Ethelred, which says that 12 of the elder thanes must be called together, one of whom is to be chosen as leader. They are to swear on the sacred relic which is under their hand that they will not accuse any innocent person or let any guilty person go free—practically the same as the oath administered today.

A grand jury does not try a case. It considers only the evidence for the prosecution and decides on that evidence whether an accused should be put on his trial before a common jury. It does not consider evidence for the defence. If it decides that the evidence is strong enough it returns a true bill, but if it considers the evidence does not warrant putting an accused on trial, it returns no bill.

A grand jury may also make presentments to the Court, on matters affecting the administration of justice, for instance. The usual practice has been to select businessmen for the grand jury panel and this probably is a remainder from the days when grand jurors had to be freeholders to the value of £lO. or £2O.