It is also very rare for the defendant to go before the grand jury and take questions. This could be a first.
No, the defendant has to be very sure of his facts to go before a grand jury. He’s sworn in before the grand jury and cannot have a defense attorney present. (no defense attorneys in the grand jury room, just the prosecutor). And he has to know that once he is sworn in, his answers to questions become evidence.
I think, if possible, every citizen who is eligible should serve on a grand jury, if possible. The process is extremely educational, and suddenly a lot of the phrases you hear in the news makes sense, and a lot of the comments by the talking heads, make no sense. Educational, very educational.
As to the breakdown of who voted what, it’s illegal to ask, and illegal for them to say. Someone may leak it later, but as of now, there were not 9 people in that room that thought the evidence was worth indicting a ham sandwich. :-)