I thought a court, based on a police report, witnesses etc., had the 'right' ?
Are we to understand any group of citizens can form a grand jury?
The People can form a grand jury for crimes and provide a "presentment" in accordance with the 5th Amendment to a district attorney.
I believe Scalia has spoken and written about the subject.
Search on the internet for:
Federal Grand Jury:
Except a special grand jury impaneled under 18 U.S.C. §§ 3331-3334, is not authorized to investigate situations involving the conduct of individuals, public officials, agencies or institutions that the grand jury believes is subject to mere criticism rather than a violation of federal criminal statutes. Its concern must be devoted solely to ascertaining whether there is probable cause to believe that a federal crime has been committed and to report accordingly to the court.
However, the fact of the matter is that the Courts really do no want to be caught up in "separation of powers" issues. SO, it seems The People must undertake what the Court have NOT the stomach to do.
Compare "Federal Grand Jury" against:
Common Law Grand Jury
Citizens Grand Jury
Civilian Grand Jury
Thomas Jefferson Grand Jury
and other variants
The concept is born from the Magna Carta, establishing a contract between the government and The People. There are "provisions" when The People feel the government has "breached" the contract -- read the translated version of the Magna Carta and you'll see how drastic those provisions can be! Donofrio started the battle cry for the Grand Jury back in January and it might have some merit if done properly.
Over the years, the hallmarks of our Grand Jury developed in England. For example, Grand Jury proceedings became secret, and the Grand Jury became independent of the Crown. As a result, a Grand Jury is able to vote an indictment or refuse to do so, as it deems proper, without regard to the recommendations of judge, prosecutor, or any other person.
When the English colonists came to America, they brought with them many of the institutions of the English legal system, including the Grand Jury. Thus, the English tradition of the Grand Jury was well established in the American colonies long before the American Revolution. Indeed, the Colonists used it as a platform from which to assert their independence from the pressures of colonial governors — just as modern day citizen are compelled to do against a seemingly-corrupt US Legislature and Judicial Branch in dealing with infractions of the current Executive Branch.
The Grand Jury as an institution was so firmly established in the traditions of our forebears that they included it in the Bill of Rights. The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States provides in part that “(n)o person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury...” Moreover, the Grand Jury system is also recognized in the constitutions of many of the states of the Union.
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THE GRAND JURY, and “we the people” when sitting as grand jurors, are, as Scalia quoted in US v. Williams, ” a constitutional fixture in its own right”. Yes, damn it. That is exactly what the grand jury is, and what it was always intended to be.
Scalia also stated, that “the grand jury is an institution separate from the courts, over whose functioning the courts do not preside…” Id.
And finally, to seal the deal, Scalia hammered the point home:
“In fact, the whole theory of its function is that it belongs to no branch of the institutional Government, serving as a kind of buffer or referee between the Government and the people. See Stirone v. United States, 361 U.S. 212, 218 (1960); Hale v. Henkel, 201 U.S. 43, 61 (1906); G. Edwards, The Grand Jury 28-32 (1906). Although the grand jury normally operates, of course, in the courthouse and under judicial auspices, its institutional relationship with the Judicial Branch has traditionally been, so to speak, at arm’s length. Judges’ direct involvement in the functioning of the grand jury has generally been confined to the constitutive one of calling the grand jurors together and administering their oaths of office. See United States v. Calandra, 414 U.S. 338, 343 (1974); Fed.Rule Crim.Proc. 6(a). [504 U.S. 36, 48] “
This miraculous quote says it all, “…the whole theory of its function is that it belongs to no branch of the institutional Government, serving as a kind of buffer or referee between the Government and the people.” The Constitution of the United States, as interpreted by the Supreme Court, gives rise to a FOURTH BRANCH of Government, THE GRAND JURY. We the people have been charged with oversight of the government in our roles as grand jurors.