Eric Garner grand jury minutes to stay private, New York court rules

[Eugene]

Source: Reuters

A New York state court on Wednesday declined to release details of a grand jury investigation that led to a police officer being cleared of wrongdoing in the death of Eric Garner after his chokehold arrest in Staten Island in July last year.

Lawyers for civil rights groups and New York's public advocate office in June called for the release of the grand jury minutes including transcripts of testimony, exhibits and details of certain grand jurors to better understand the decision not to charge officer Daniel Pantaleo for Garner's death.

Garner was black and Pantaleo is white, and the case caused widespread protests last year.

The lawyers did not establish a compelling reason for disclosure of the minutes, the appellate division of New York State's Supreme Court said on Wednesday.

"The public interest in preserving grand jury secrecy outweighed the public interest in disclosure," the ruling said.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/29/us-usa-garner-appeal-idUSKCN0Q32M020150729

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US | Wed Jul 29, 2015 5:23pm EDT
NEW YORK

[Dont call me Shirley]

1. Lawyers better come up with more compelling reasons then. These minutes should be public.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

2. What is the public interest in keeping grand jury minutes secret?

Propping up a level of trust in the justice system that no longer exists?

[Igel]

4. Perhaps the names of the jurors and all the witnesses have not been made public.

And, were they made public, the suspicion is that their lives would be made into a living hell. Along with their families.

Then, the next time there was a high-profile case that went to the grand jury, the jurors might think, "Gee, I know what the judge said about the law, but I also suspect if I decide something in ways that others not privy to all the information I've seen don't like my name will also become public and my life will be made into a living hell. I love my family and don't want to see their lives made into a living hell, so I'll do what I think is popular, not what the testimony in front of me shows."

And those testifying might think, "You know, I won't say what I think happened, because I don't want that rock with a death threat thrown through my living room window. Not with my wife and kids there. So I'll say what'll make me and my family safe."

For many, that would be a good justice system.

Sad, that.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

5. They could redact.

The names of the jurors have nothing to do with the evidence in the case, which is what the public is actually interested in.

[heaven05]

3. of course

what obvious BS. They only fool themselves into thinking they have people who care about the fact that #BlackLivesMatter, fooled. No more. I for one have been on to the privileged and their games for a long time and the beautiful thing I am seeing is more and more young people are on the the games the privileged play to keep POC and the dirt poor "in their place". It just won't work.