Federal Grand Juries Are Reclaiming Their Constitutional Role as Checks on Prosecutorial Overreach
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/by/chesa-boudin. "Opinion | A Grand Jury Will Indict a Ham Sandwich? Not in the Trump Era. - The New York Times." February 14, 2026. www.nytimes.com
The Gist
The authors argue that federal grand juries are starting to reject politically motivated criminal charges from the Trump administration, which shows they're doing their real job of protecting people from government abuse. They want to give grand juries better tools and procedures so they can continue serving as a check on prosecutors who might be going after political enemies instead of real criminals.
Conclusion
Federal grand juries should be given stronger procedural protections to better serve as meaningful checks on government prosecutorial power, especially against politically motivated charges
Premises
- Grand juries are increasingly refusing to indict in high-profile cases involving Trump administration prosecutions, breaking from their usual pattern of extreme deference to prosecutors
- These 'no bills' represent grand juries fulfilling their original constitutional purpose as protectors against oppressive government prosecution
- Current federal grand jury procedures are severely limited, allowing hearsay evidence, secret proceedings, and minimal oversight that reduces them to 'rubber stamps'
- The recent rejections involve cases that appear to be politically motivated prosecutions of protesters, political figures, and dissidents rather than legitimate criminal cases
- Some states like California have implemented stronger grand jury procedures that limit hearsay and allow post-indictment challenges, proving reform is feasible
- Procedural reforms would strengthen legitimate prosecutions while preventing pretextual prosecutions of political adversaries
Assumptions
- The Trump administration is systematically using federal prosecution as a tool of political persecution
- Grand juries can effectively distinguish between legitimate criminal cases and politically motivated prosecutions
- The current pattern of grand jury refusals represents principled civic duty rather than political bias
- Stronger procedural protections would not significantly impede legitimate criminal prosecutions
- Grand juries historically served as meaningful checks on government power and should return to that role