I served on a grand jury for a year. Doubt that most have done so or know anything about a grand jury or when a grand jury is called-in to hear a case.
We only had one case the year I served. It was a formality. The prosecution doesn't call for a grand jury unless they have a slam-dunk with extenuating circumstances.
In our case the detective in-charge got in trouble for unrelated things and was not available to be called as a witness. The prosecutor had everything for a conviction but could not go through regular channels because the over-riding evidence would have gotten tossed out due to the 'lead detective issues', a perfect scenario for a grand jury who hear a case because they decide IF THERE IS ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO GO TO TRIAL.
That is the main purpose of a grand jury. NOT to DECIDE a case, but to hear the evidence and decide if there is enough or strong-enough evidence to go to trial.
Having gone through the process I know a prosecutor won't go through the time/expense/and considerable trouble of calling-in a grand jury unless they know they have a slam-dunk case so how did Watson get off?
PFT spells it out.
When I saw this, I thought '
something is rotten in Denmark' if they had 5 witnesses and only let one testify but PFT gives a good explanation.
Good read.
Deshaun Watson grand jury wanted to hear from only one alleged victim
... As we’ve previously explained, indictments often hinge on the zeal applied by the prosecutor. If the prosecutor wants to indict a suspect, it’s not hard to do — since the defendant has no representation in the process. If the prosecutor doesn’t want to indict a suspect, it’s also not hard to do. The prosecutor controls what is and isn’t presented, and
a skilled prosecutor can nudge a grand jury in a desired direction.
So why wouldn’t the prosecutor in this case not want an indictment of Watson? Possibly, she truly believed no crimes had been committed. It’s also possible that
she believed she would not be able to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial, even if she believed that Watson had crossed the line.
There’s a fundamental difference between factual guilt and legal guilt. Plenty of people are factually guilty, but the court system can’t prove that they are legally guilty. As to Watson, the criminal process has ended. On the civil side, 22 cases remain. In one or more of those cases, a jury eventually could conclude that he violated the legal rights of the women who are suing him, under the much lower legal standard of preponderance of the evidence.
-----------------
Excellent summary.
Watson still faces SUBSTANTIAL civil cases and will almost certainly have this hanging over his head and get an NFL suspension.
The thing is even if he gets a year suspension he's so young and talented that someone will pull the trigger and get a hell of a QB.