What is a grand jury as opposed to a jury trial?
The grand jury is composed of citizens within the county of the Circuit Court for which the grand jury has been convened. It meets in secret and makes a probable cause determination based upon evidence generally only submitted by the District Attorney. The grand jury can hand down a true bill, (which becomes an indictment or formal charge), a no true bill, (which after the third no true bill finding, the case has to be dismissed), or it may pass the case. A jury trial occurs after the grand jury has issued an indictment; the defendant is arraigned and provided a copy of his charges. The jury is normally composed of 12 jurors who must find, beyond a reasonable doubt, that a defendant has committed each and every act and element of the offense charged and that there is no evidence which supports a reasonable hypothesis inconsistent with guilt.
