owmyfreakingeyes t1_jedd927 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 4:52 AM

Reply to comment by RightioThen in eli5 What does “indicted” mean? by jcw10489

It is. I don't know about New York specifically, but state/county prosecutors often have the option to defer to a grand jury and it tends to be done in high profile cases or situations where the prosecutor wants distance or cover from the decision to charge or not to charge.

It's less common for state charges and the process varies more by jurisdiction so the conviction statistics aren't as reliable as the federal ones.

thelanoyo t1_jedfq99 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 5:19 AM

Nobody wants to be the guy to press charges against a high profile anybody. Let the grand jury do it so that prosecutors can use them as a scape goat basically.

M3rr1lin t1_jedis36 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 5:55 AM

I wouldn’t necessarily call it a scape goat. It’s intended to bring a level of impartiality which I think is a good thing. I’m general I think they should be used more often , but especially in cases where it can be high profile.

Welpe t1_jedqx69 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 7:45 AM

A case this high profile not even a grand jury would function as a scapegoat. If they got the indictment but not the conviction because they overplayed the evidence they had…let’s just say it would not be a positive career move. They absolutely want the opinion of the grand jury on the evidence they have and playing fast and loose with bias to get the indictment with weak evidence would be self-destructive.