2010 Wyoming Statutes
Title 7 - Criminal Procedure
Chapter 5 - Grand Jury

CHAPTER 5 - GRAND JURY

 

ARTICLE 1 - IN GENERAL

 

7-5-101. Required court order for summoning.

 

A grand jury shall be summoned only when ordered by a judge of the district court.

 

7-5-102. Manner of summoning; term.

 

A grand jury shall be drawn, summoned and impaneled in the same manner as trial juries in civil actions and shall serve for one (1) year following selection unless discharged sooner by the district judge.

 

7-5-103. Composition; qualifications; alternates.

 

 

(a) A grand jury shall consist of twelve (12) persons who shall possess the qualifications of trial jurors as provided by W.S. 1-11-101.

 

(b) The district judge may direct the selection of one (1) or more alternate jurors who shall sit as regular jurors before an indictment is found. If a member of the grand jury becomes unable or disqualified to perform his duty he shall be replaced by an alternate juror.

 

7-5-104. Finding of indictment.

 

 

(a) No indictment shall be found unless the finding is concurred in by at least nine (9) members of the grand jury.

 

(b) Not less than nine (9) jurors may act as the grand jury in which event it is required that all of them concur in finding an indictment.

 

(c) If an indictment is found as provided by this section the foreman of the grand jury shall endorse upon the indictment the words "A True Bill" and shall sign the indictment.

 

ARTICLE 2 - PROCEEDINGS

 

7-5-201. Appointment of foreman; oath of jurors.

 

 

(a) The district judge shall appoint one (1) of the jurors to be foreman. The foreman is authorized to administer oaths to witnesses and shall sign indictments as provided by W.S. 7-5-104.

 

(b) Before entering upon their duties, an oath or affirmation shall be administered to the foreman and each of the jurors providing, in substance, that each of them will:

 

(i) Diligently inquire into all matters coming before them;

 

(ii) Find and present indictments truthfully and without malice, fear of reprisal or hope of reward; and

 

(iii) Keep secret matters occurring before the grand jury unless disclosure is directed or permitted by the court.

 

7-5-202. Charging of duties; powers.

 

 

(a) After the grand jury is impaneled and sworn, the district judge shall charge the jurors as to their duties particularly to the obligation of secrecy which their oaths impose, and give them any information the court deems proper concerning any offenses known to the court and likely to come before the grand jury.

 

(b) The grand jury may:

 

(i) Inquire into any crimes committed or triable within the county and present them to the court by indictment; and

 

(ii) Investigate and report to the court concerning the condition of the county jail and the treatment of prisoners.

 

7-5-203. Right of district attorney to appear before jury; presence of other persons during deliberations.

 

 

(a) The district attorney, or the deputy or assistant district attorney may appear before the grand jury for the purpose of:

 

(i) Giving information relative to any matter under inquiry;

 

(ii) Giving requested advice upon any legal matter; and

 

(iii) Interrogating witnesses.

 

(b) No person other than the grand jurors shall be present during the deliberations of the grand jury or when the jurors are voting.

 

7-5-204. Process for witnesses.

 

If requested by the grand jury or the district attorney, the clerk of the court in which the jury is impaneled shall issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses to testify before the grand jury.

 

7-5-205. Administration of oath or affirmation to witnesses.

 

Before any witness is examined by the grand jury, an oath or affirmation shall be administered to him by the foreman.

 

7-5-206. Proceedings upon refusal of witness to testify.

 

If a witness appearing before a grand jury refuses, without just cause shown, to testify or provide other information, the district attorney may take the witness before the court for an order directing the witness to show cause why the witness should not be held in contempt. If after hearing the court finds that the refusal was without just cause, and if the witness continues to refuse to testify or produce evidence, the court may hold the witness in contempt subject to the punishment provided by W.S. 1-12-108(a)(ii).

 

7-5-207. Secrecy of indictments against persons not under control.

 

The district judge may direct that an indictment shall be kept secret until the defendant is in custody or has given bail, and in that event the clerk shall seal the indictment and no person shall disclose the finding of the indictment except when necessary for the issuance and execution of a warrant or summons.

 

7-5-208. Confidentiality.

 

 

(a) Disclosure of matters occurring before the grand jury, other than its deliberations and the vote of any juror, may be made to the district attorney for use in the performance of his duties. The district attorney may disclose so much of the grand jury's proceeding to law enforcement agencies as he deems essential to the public interest and effective law enforcement.

 

(b) Except as provided in subsection (a) of this section, a juror, attorney, interpreter, stenographer, operator of a recording device or any typist who transcribes recorded testimony may disclose matters occurring before the grand jury only when so directed by the court preliminarily to or in connection with a judicial proceeding or when permitted by the court at the request of the defendant upon a showing that a particularized need exists for a motion to dismiss the indictment because of matters occurring before the grand jury.

 

(c) No obligation of secrecy may be imposed upon any person except in accordance with this section and W.S. 7-5-207.

 

7-5-209. Presentation and filing of indictment.

 

Indictments found by the grand jury shall be presented by the foreman to the court in the presence of the jury and filed with the clerk.

 

ARTICLE 3 - STATE GRAND JURY

 

7-5-301. Petition for impaneling; determination by district judge.

 

If the attorney general or the governor deems it to be in the public interest to convene a grand jury which shall have jurisdiction extending beyond the boundaries of any single county, he may petition the judge of any district court for an order in accordance with the provisions of W.S. 7-5-301 through 7-5-309. The district judge may, for good cause shown, order the impaneling of a state grand jury which shall have statewide jurisdiction. In making his determination as to the need for impaneling a state grand jury, the judge shall require a showing that the matter cannot be effectively handled by a county grand jury impaneled pursuant to W.S. 7-5-101 through 7-5-209.

 

7-5-302. Powers and duties; applicable law; procedural rules.

 

A state grand jury shall have the same powers and duties and shall function in the same manner as a county grand jury, except for the provisions of W.S. 7-5-202(b)(ii), and except that its jurisdiction shall extend throughout the state. The law applicable to county grand juries shall apply to state grand juries except when the law is inconsistent with the provisions of W.S. 7-5-301 through 7-5-309. The supreme court may promulgate any rules it deems necessary to govern the procedures of state grand juries.

 

7-5-303. Selection and term of members.

 

The clerk of the district court in each county of the state, upon receipt of an order of the district judge of the court granting a petition to impanel a state grand jury, shall prepare a list of fifteen (15) prospective state grand jurors drawn from existing jury lists of the county. The list so prepared shall be immediately sent to the clerk of the court granting the petition to impanel the state grand jury. The district judge granting the order shall impanel the state grand jury from the lists compiled by the clerks of court. The judge preparing the final list from which the grand jurors will be chosen need not include the names of jurors from every county within the state having due regard for the expense and inconvenience of travel. A state grand jury shall be composed of twelve (12) persons, but not more than one-half (1/2) of the members of the state grand jury shall be residents of any one (1) county. The members of the state grand jury shall be selected by the court in the same manner as jurors of county grand juries and shall serve for one (1) year following selection unless discharged sooner by the district judge.

 

7-5-304. Summoning of jurors.

 

Jurors shall be summoned and selected in the same manner as jurors of county grand juries.

 

7-5-305. Judicial supervision.

 

Judicial supervision of the state grand jury shall be maintained by the district judge who issued the order impaneling the grand jury, and all indictments, reports and other formal returns of any kind made by the grand jury shall be returned to that judge.

 

7-5-306. Presentation of evidence.

 

The presentation of the evidence shall be made to the state grand jury by the attorney general or his designee. In the event the office of the attorney general is under investigation, the presentation of evidence shall be made to the state grand jury by an attorney appointed by the Wyoming supreme court.

 

7-5-307. Return of indictment; designation of venue; consolidation of indictments.

 

Any indictment by the state grand jury shall be returned to the district judge without any designation of venue. Thereupon, the judge shall, by order, designate the county of venue for the purpose of trial. The judge may order the consolidation of an indictment returned by a county grand jury with an indictment returned by a state grand jury and fix venue for trial.

 

7-5-308. Investigative powers; secrecy of proceedings.

 

 

(a) In addition to its powers of indictment, a statewide grand jury impaneled under W.S. 7-5-301 through 7-5-309 may, at the request of the attorney general, cause an investigation to be made into the extent of organized criminal activity within the state and return a report to the attorney general.

 

(b) Disclosure of matters occurring before the grand jury, other than its deliberations and the vote of any juror, may be made to the attorney general and to any district attorney for use in the performance of their duties. Those officials may disclose so much of the grand jury's proceedings to law enforcement agencies as they deem essential to the public interest and effective law enforcement.

 

(c) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, a juror, attorney, interpreter, stenographer, operator of a recording device or any typist who transcribes recorded testimony may disclose matters occurring before the grand jury only when so directed by the court preliminarily to or in connection with a judicial proceeding or when permitted by the court at the request of the defendant upon a showing that a particularized need exists for a motion to dismiss the indictment because of matters occurring before the grand jury.

 

(d) No obligation of secrecy may be imposed upon any person except in accordance with this section. The court may direct that an indictment shall be kept secret until the defendant is in custody or has given bail, and in that event, the clerk shall seal the indictment and no person shall disclose the finding of the indictment except when necessary for the issuance and execution of a warrant or summons.

 

7-5-309. Costs and expenses.

 

The costs and expenses incurred in impaneling a state grand jury and in the performance of its functions and duties shall be paid by the state out of funds appropriated to the attorney general for that purpose.