Frequently Asked Questions
Why are the grand jury's proceedings secret?
The Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure require that grand jurors and federal prosecutors keep grand jury proceedings, including the existence of a federal criminal investigation, completely secret unless and until the grand jury returns an indictment against one or more defendants. Witnesses, other than law enforcement officials, called to testify before the grand jury are not generally under the same secrecy requirements. However, under most circumstances it is illegal for prosecutors to reveal the details of grand jury deliberations. This is one of the reasons that the U.S. Attorney's Office declines to comment on cases under investigation.