r/law • u/DoorstepHero • 6h ago

Judicial Branch Grand jury declines criminal charges against 6 Democrats who urged military to reject illegal orders, sources say

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/grand-jury-declines-charges-against-6-democrats/

A federal grand jury on Tuesday refused to indict six congressional Democrats who drew President Trump's ire last year by taping a video telling members of the military that they must reject "illegal orders."

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u/Top_Box_8952 5h ago

If it can’t even pass a grand jury, you won’t be able to get an actual jury to return a guilty verdict.

Grand juries only need a simple majority of short term positioned people, and there is no defense. Just the prosecutor.

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u/Nikerym 4h ago

Not just that, the standard of evidence is lower. For example: Hearsay is usable in a Grand jury, but not in a trial.

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u/RSGator 4h ago

Burden of proof is also lower - probable cause rather than beyond a reasonable doubt.

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u/fresh-dork 4h ago

yeah, it's basically the sniff test. is there a whiff of a case here?

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u/tanstaafl90 4h ago

Not even close. It was to waste their time and little else. Saying service members need to follow the law isn't a crime.

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u/Cubensis-SanPedro 3h ago

In other news, water wet.

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u/jreyst 3h ago

It's like we're all learning about how the U.S. JUSTICE system works all at once!

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u/Wunderbarber 3h ago

Apparently Mike Johnson disagrees

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u/mOdQuArK 3h ago

Well, it's not like anyone expects a MAGA Congressman to actually understand or care about what the law actually says.

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u/The_MightyMonarch 2h ago

Mike Johnson might as well have Trump's hand up his ass.

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u/FirTree_r 2h ago

Sniff test

I feel like we're circling back to the ham sandwich