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Rule 6 – The Grand Jury

May 13, 2021 | Criminal Procedure, Maine

(a) Number of Grand Jurors. The grand jury shall consist of not fewer than 13 nor more than 23 jurors and a sufficient number of legally qualified persons shall be summoned to meet this requirement.
(b) Objections to Grand Jury and to Grand Jurors.

(1)Challenges. Either the attorney for the State or a defendant who has been held to answer may challenge an individual grand juror on the ground that the juror is not legally qualified or that a state of mind exists on the juror’s part that may prevent the juror from acting impartially. All challenges must be in writing and allege the ground upon which the challenge is made, and such challenges must be made before the time the grand jurors commence receiving evidence at each session of the grand jury. If a challenge to an individual grand juror is sustained, the juror shall be discharged, and the court may replace the juror from persons drawn or selected for grand jury service.
(2)Motion to Dismiss. A motion to dismiss the indictment may be based on objections to the array or, if not previously determined upon challenge, on the lack of legal qualifications of an individual juror or on the ground that a state of mind existed on the juror’s part that prevented the juror from acting impartially, but an indictment shall not be dismissed on the ground that one or more members of the grand jury were not legally qualified if it appears from the record kept pursuant to subdivision (c) of this Rule that 12 or more jurors, after deducting the number not legally qualified, concurred in finding the indictment.
(c) Foreperson and Deputy Foreperson. The court shall appoint one of the jurors to be foreperson and another to be deputy foreperson. The foreperson shall have power to administer oaths and affirmations and shall sign all indictments. The foreperson or another juror designated by the foreperson shall keep a record of the number of jurors concurring in the finding of every indictment and shall file the record with the clerk of the Unified Criminal Docket, but the record shall not be public except on order of the court. During the absence of the foreperson the deputy foreperson shall act as foreperson.
(d) Presence During Proceedings. While the grand jury is taking evidence, only the attorneys for the State, the witness under examination, and, when ordered by the court, a security officer, an interpreter or translator, a court reporter, or an operator of electronic recording equipment may be present. While the grand jury is deliberating or voting, only the jurors may be present.
(e) General Rule of Secrecy. A juror, attorney, security officer, interpreter, translator, court reporter, operator of electronic recording equipment, or any person to whom disclosure is made under this Rule may not disclose matters occurring before the grand jury, except as otherwise provided in these Rules or when so directed by the court. No obligation of secrecy may be imposed upon any person except in accordance with this Rule. In the event an indictment is not returned, any stenographic notes and electronic backup, if any, of an official court reporter or tape or digital record of an electronic sound recording and any written record of information necessary for an accurate transcription prepared by the operator and any transcriptions of such notes, tape, or digital record shall be impounded by the court. The court may direct that an indictment be kept secret until the defendant is in custody or has given bail, and in that event the court shall seal the indictment and no person may disclose the finding of the indictment except when necessary for the issuance or execution of a warrant or summons. Disclosure otherwise prohibited by this Rule of matters occurring before the grand jury, other than its deliberations and any vote of any juror, may be made by an attorney for the State to:

(1) an attorney for the State in the performance of the duty of an attorney for the State to enforce the State’s criminal laws;
(2) any staff members assigned to an attorney for the State who that attorney considers necessary to assist in the performance of that attorney’s duty to enforce the State’s criminal laws;
(3) any government personnel not otherwise addressed in this subdivision or subdivision (h) of this Rule that an attorney for the State considers necessary to assist in the performance of that attorney’s duty to enforce the State’s criminal laws; and
(4) another State grand jury by an attorney for the State in the performance of the duty of an attorney for the State to enforce the State’s criminal laws.

Any person to whom matters are disclosed under paragraphs (1), (2), or (3) of subdivision (e) of this Rule may not utilize that grand jury material for any purpose other than assisting the attorney for the State in the performance of such attorney’s duty to enforce the State’s criminal laws. An attorney for the State who has made a disclosure pursuant to paragraph 3 of subdivision (e) of this Rule with respect to matters occurring before the grand jury shall promptly provide the court with the name of the persons and agencies to whom such disclosure has been made and shall certify that the attorney for the State has advised such persons of their obligation of secrecy under this Rule.

(f) Recording of Proceedings. Upon motion of the defendant or the attorney for the State, the court, in its discretion for good cause shown, may order that a court reporter or operator of electronic recording equipment be present for the purpose of taking evidence. No person other than a court reporter or operator of electronic recording equipment shall be permitted to record any portion of the proceeding.
(g) Procedure for Preparation and Disclosure of Transcript. No transcript may be prepared of the record of the evidence presented to the grand jury without an order of the court. Upon motion of the defendant or the attorney for the State and upon a showing of particularized need, the court may order a transcript of the record of the evidence to be furnished to the defendant or the attorney for the State upon such terms and conditions as are just.

(1) Transcripts of the record of the evidence may also be furnished upon such terms and conditions as are just

(A) When ordered by the court preliminarily to or in connection with a judicial proceeding and upon a showing of particularized need; or
(B) When ordered by the court at the request of an attorney for the State to an appropriate official of another jurisdiction for the purpose of enforcing the criminal laws of another jurisdiction upon a showing that such disclosure may constitute evidence of a violation of the criminal laws of that other jurisdiction.
(2) A petition for disclosure pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (g) shall be filed in the Unified Criminal Docket where the grand jury was convened. Unless the hearing is ex parte, which it may be when the petitioner is the State, the petitioner shall serve written notice of the petition upon

(A) The attorneys for the State who were present before the grand jury, or their designee;
(B) The parties to the judicial proceeding if disclosure is sought in connection with such a proceeding; and
(C) Such other persons as the court may direct. The court shall afford those persons a reasonable opportunity to appear and be heard before disclosure of the transcript of the record of the evidence. The court shall order such a hearing to be closed to the extent necessary to prevent disclosure of matters occurring before the grand jury.
(3) If the judicial proceeding giving rise to the petition is before a court of another county, the court that convened the grand jury may transfer the disclosure hearing to the Unified Criminal Docket of the county of the petitioning court, unless the court convening the grand jury may reasonably obtain sufficient knowledge of the proceeding to determine whether disclosure is proper. The court convening the grand jury may order transmitted to the court to which the matter is transferred the material sought to be disclosed, if feasible, and a written evaluation of the need for continued grand jury secrecy.
(h) Disclosure for Certain Law Enforcement Purposes. Disclosure otherwise prohibited by this Rule of matters occurring before the grand jury, other than its deliberations and any vote of any grand juror, may be made by an attorney for the State to any law enforcement personnel (including personnel of the United States, another state or territory, or a subdivision of such) who that attorney considers necessary to assist in the performance of that attorney’s duty to enforce the State’s criminal laws. Any person to whom matters are disclosed under this subdivision may not utilize that grand jury material for any purpose other than assisting an attorney for the State in the performance of such attorney’s duty to enforce the State’s criminal laws. An attorney for the State who has made a disclosure pursuant to this subdivision with respect to matters occurring before the grand jury shall promptly provide the court with the names of the persons and agencies to whom such disclosure has been made, and shall certify that the attorney for the State has advised such persons of their obligation of secrecy under this Rule.
(i) Finding and Return of Indictment. An indictment may be found only upon the concurrence of 12 or more jurors. The indictment shall be returned to the court by the grand jury or its foreperson or its deputy foreperson in open court. If the defendant is in custody or has given bail and 12 jurors do not concur in finding an indictment, the foreperson shall so report to the court in writing forthwith.
(j) Excuse. At any time for cause shown, the court may excuse a juror either temporarily or permanently, and in the latter event the court may impanel another person in place of the juror excused. No juror may participate in voting with respect to an indictment unless the juror shall have been in attendance at the presentation of all the evidence produced in favor of and adverse to the return of the indictment.

Me. R. Uni. Crim. P. 6

Last amended effective November 2, 2016.