The news of District Attorney John Sarsfield’s convening of a
standing criminal grand jury has some local attorneys scratching
their heads.
After almost 20 years in the office, former district attorney
Harry Damkar, who is now a practicing defense attorney, only
convened criminal grand juries with extremely sensitive cases that
warranted closed proceedings, he said.
The news of District Attorney John Sarsfield’s convening of a standing criminal grand jury has some local attorneys scratching their heads.
After almost 20 years in the office, former district attorney Harry Damkar, who is now a practicing defense attorney, only convened criminal grand juries with extremely sensitive cases that warranted closed proceedings, he said.
During his tenure, his office convened a criminal grand jury approximately five times. The last time a criminal grand jury was convened in San Benito County was in the mid to late-1990s, he said.
Cases involving police misconduct, where allegations that may or may not be true could damage an officer’s reputation, sensitive cases involving children, or cases where a witnesses’ testimony could put them in danger are when criminal grand juries are most commonly used, he said.
One reason Damkar felt it appropriate not to use the grand jury often was because the proceedings are closed to the public.
“You want to have open proceedings in criminal cases as much as possible to let the community know what’s going on,” he said. “It’s why a lot of people don’t like the grand jury system – because it’s perceived as back-room proceedings.”
Under the California Constitution, state law requires that every county appoint a grand jury every year. San Benito County appoints 19 jurors to serve as an independent body of the court with the independent authority that is not answerable to administrators or legislators, according to the county’s grand jury Web site.
While the grand jury serves a primarily civil function, it can be convened for criminal cases when needed, Damkar said.
“We didn’t have a separate criminal grand jury because we didn’t use it very much,” Damkar said. “There were just very few cases we believed warranted it. Most of the indictments ended up in cases being dismissed or thrown out.”
Why Sarsfield would choose to convene a standing criminal grand jury, which is more expensive for tax payers and more time consuming, is somewhat of a mystery, Damkar said.
“I can’t think of any other reason other than keeping things secret from the public.”
Sarsfield did not return several phone calls Thursday.
Questions regarding the mix of races included on the grand jury, and how the jurors will or have been selected, are concerns local attorney Arthur Cantu expressed over the complex impaneling process.
“Why can’t he use the grand jury he already has to answer the questions he has?” Cantu said. “For the last 30 years there has been no cry or call for a (standing) criminal grand jury- it’s just not done in small counties.”
Other challenges grand juries face include the selection process, and making sure the jurors represent a fair and unbiased cross-section of the community, he said.
Under the current grand jury, jurors are selected after a screening process by the court at the beginning of the fiscal year (July 1), according to the county’s Web site.
People interested in becoming grand jurors submit an application to the jury commissioner.
“There’s a whole list of statues of how a grand jury must be selected,” Damkar said. “You have to abide by those rules or you have an improperly composed grand jury.”
Having a sitting criminal grand jury in a county the size of San Benito is unusual, said local defense attorney Greg LaForge.
“It’s a waste of tax payer money. A county of this size to have a standing criminal grand jury is absurd,” LaForge said. “It’s taking away the power of the judges…. it’s really a joke.”
The current grand jury may hear evidence concerning criminal activity, and when there is probable cause may bring charges to return an indictment – but this happens infrequently, according to the grand jury’s Web site. Most criminal complaints are handled through the court and preliminary hearings before judges.
“My opinion is the only reason Sarsfield is convening a standing criminal grand jury is to hide his failures from the public,” LaForge said. “Because if the person is not indicted, nobody knows. If they are indicted Sarsfield can say, ’19 members of the community says he’s indicted.'”
