Thread by @briangallini

1/ Let's talk about some of the problems with the grand jury's decision not to indict the officers responsible for killing #BreonnaTaylor [Thread] cnn.com/2020/09/23/us/…

2/ Let's start with some background (I promise it's relevant and short): first, as a general matter, a grand jury is asked to consider presented evidence and decide whether probable cause exists to believe that a crime has been committed by one or more individuals.

3/ second, the grand jury is an independent body - disconnected from any branch of government. It deliberates in secret and the prosecutor is the only attorney presenting evidence. There is no obligation to present exculpatory evidence and/or defenses.

4/ For these reasons, criminal defense attorneys are wary of grand jury proceedings. As New York Judge Sol Wachtler once famously said, “district attorneys now have so much influence on grand juries that ‘by and large’ they could get them to ‘indict a ham sandwich.’”

5/ Against this backdrop, perhaps you can already see some of the problems with today's decision. First, the state Attorney General (Daniel Cameron) said that the investigation showed the officers did announce themselves before entering. He should not have said that.

6/ To the contrary, that's a factual question that is not for him--or the grand jury--to decide. It would instead be appropriate for a jury to decide at trial. Second, he said the officers' use of force was justified; again, he should not have said that and, again, that's . . .

7/ a jury question. But the better point on this comment is that it contradicts basic self-defense law, which includes two doctrinal components relevant here: (1) the initial aggressor (officers) cannot claim self-defense; and (2) the homeowner (Kenneth Walker here) has ...

8/ no duty to retreat prior to using deadly force to combat a deadly threat. That makes Cameron's claim legally wrong--wholly apart from the impropriety of his assertion of the claim to begin with. It also suggests, by the way, that the prosecutor presented that defense ...

9/ to the grand jury, which you now know they were not obligated to do--and often *don't* do. I threw a lot at you but let me sum it up really simply: what happened today is wrong and this is not how a prosecutor typically empanels and relies on the grand jury system.