St. Louis County prosecutor Bob McCulloch. (photo: Cristina Fletes-Boutte/Reuters)
05 January 15
member of the grand jury that declined to file criminal charges against
former Ferguson Police Officer Darren Wilson in the death of Michael
Brown sued St. Louis County Prosecutor Robert McCulloch Monday for the
right to speak publicly about the proceedings.
The suit says that the former juror, identified in
court documents only as "Grand Juror Doe," wishes to speak out to
challenge public misconceptions about the case and that speaking
publicly could "contribute to the current public dialogue concerning
race relations" that was sparked by the Aug. 9 fatal shooting of Brown.
It hints that jurors were not unanimous in their decision not to charge
Wilson. Doe also wants "to advocate for legislative change to the way
grand juries are conducted in Missouri," the suit says.
The suit, filed in federal court in St. Louis, asks a
judge to rule unconstitutional the Missouri law that would criminalize
any of Doe's comments "about Doe's experiences as a state grand juror"
and bar McCulloch from prosecuting Doe.
The investigation of Wilson "had a stronger focus on
the victim than in other grand jury cases," the suit claims. The
presentation of evidence and "the State's counsel to the grand jury"
"differed markedly and in significant ways. . . from the hundreds of
matters presented to the grand jury earlier in its term." The suit also
claims the legal guidelines presented to jurors in applying facts of the
case were "muddled and untimely" compared to other cases.
The plaintiff claims McCulloch's characterization of
the grand jury's view of the evidence was at odds with Doe's opinions of
the case, that the public's understanding of the grand jurors' views is
"not entirely accurate."
The suits says Doe wants to challenge the accuracy of
public statements and opinions about the grand jury, "especially the
implication that all grand jurors believed that there was no support for
any charges." It says that the heavily-redacted grand jury documents
that have been released, and the lack of context, "do not fully portray
the proceedings before the grand jury."
State law says it is a misdemeanor for grand jurors to discuss their service. The plaintiff is being represented by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Town and Country law firm of Sowers & Wolf.
“The rules of secrecy must yield because this is a
highly unusual circumstance," Tony Rothert, legal director of the ACLU
of Missouri, said in a prepared statement. "The First Amendment prevents
the state from imposing a lifetime gag order in cases where the
prosecuting attorney has purported to be transparent.”
Jeffrey Mittman, executive director of the ACLU, said
that as both the public and legislatures are currently debating police
misconduct, racial profiling and other issues sparked by the Brown
shooting, “We believe that the public and the legislature need to have
this information and we're working to convince a judge. . . . ”
Mittman said that the information about the grand jury
investigation had been entirely “one-sided” and “government-directed”
to date.
“How this process worked. . . is solely being driven
by the government,” he told the Post-Dispatch, adding, “as you know, the
First Amendment doesn't allow that.”
The public is entitled to “complete information not controlled by the government.”
Asked Doe's gender, how Doe approached lawyers,
whether Doe's opinions represent the opinion of other grand jurors and
whether Doe's suit might prompt other jurors to come forward, Mittman
offered essentially similar versions of the same statement: “This grand
juror is being very respectful of the legal process and does not want to
share information that it is not legally permissible to share.”
One reason the grand jury process is secret is to
protect the target if an indictment is not returned, Mittman said. The
court, he said, will look at reasons to break that secrecy: the
interests of public policy and the ongoing debate about “are grand
juries the best way to deal with police misconduct?”
Mittman did not want to speculate about how long the
case will take to be resolved. “We certainly hope to work cooperatively
with the attorneys for the county. It would be wonderful if there could
be an expedited process.”
A McCulloch spokesman declined to comment, saying that McCulloch had not yet been served with the suit.
The grand jury Nov. 24 announced it would not indict Wilson for killing Brown.
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