Word: morgenthau
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...Manhattan grand jury decided that he had been justified in his use of force, and declined to indict him on any charges but illegal possession of weapons. District Attorney Robert Morgenthau was criticized for a lack of vigor in pressing for a homicide indictment and for his decision not to allow any of the youths to testify. Morgenthau, who is up for re-election this year, was accused of swaying with the breeze of public opinion. Morgenthau rationalized his decision not to allow any of the youths to testify by saying that he did not want to give them automatic...
More than six weeks after the first grand jury's decision, Morgenthau announced that on the basis of "significant new evidence" a second grand jury would be convened. The new evidence, which Morgenthau would not divulge, consisted at least in part of testimony by Ramseur and Canty, both of whom received immunity, and Flores, who has suggested that Goetz might have been looking for trouble. Goetz practically begged to testify, but he balked when Morgenthau insisted that he sign a complete waiver of immunity...
Slotnick tartly described the outcome as the result of "a very zealous presentation." Morgenthau did not deny that his office had been more aggressive the second time around. "There wasn't new evidence," he said, "until we looked for it and found it." Goetz's lawyers insist that there was no actual new evidence...
...controversial aspect of the proceedings. Grand juries have always met behind closed doors to protect the reputations of the accused and to shield jurors and witnesses from possible retaliation. "There's one woman who was a witness in the Goetz case who was scared to death," District Attorney Robert Morgenthau says. "If her name was disclosed, she wouldn't have testified." But critics say the secret presentation of evidence allows the prosecutor to use the grand jury as a political pawn. "The opportunity for abuse is too great and the opportunity for scrutiny too little," says Ivar Goldart...
...counsel into the jury room under some circumstances. In New York, legislators are considering using grand juries only in cases where no one has yet been arrested. Another proposal would allow prosecutors to offer only partial immunity to witnesses in an attempt to solve problems like the one Morgenthau faced with Goetz's victims. Britain abandoned the grand jury system in 1933 in favor of hearings before a magistrate. Yet even though grand juries are under & heavy fire in some states, Morgenthau points out: "I would rather have my fate in the hands of 23 representative citizens of the county...