Louisville, KY – In a landmark judgment, the court is allowing the grand jurors to speak publicly about the Breonna Taylor case. Under normal circumstances, grand jurors are only allowed to discuss the cases under investigation with fellow grand jurors, the United States Attorney, or the Assistant United States Attorney. Additionally, those discussions can only take place in the grand jury room.
Judge Annie O’Connell made an exception to this rule in the Taylor case. Specifically, the judge is granting the disclosure of full proceedings, giving participants the ability to release information about what happened. O’Connell ruled that “the traditional justifications for secrecy in this matter are no longer relevant and that the ends of justice require disclosure.”
This ruling comes while grand jurors feel that talking about it will bring transparency about how and why jurors came to their conclusion in this case.
The state prosecutors did express that granting this motion compromises the defendants’ right to a fair trial. However, Judge O’Connell differed, adjudicating that the court “could not find this concern founded in reality.”
The judge’s ruling applies to only Breonna Taylor’s case. Will this truly help in transparency or will flawed interpretations of the ruling play their part?
Thumbnail Credit: Reuters/Bryant Lawrence
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