Grand jury

A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought, operating independently of the courts and with the power to subpoena evidence and compel witness testimony. Originating in medieval England, the institution survives today mainly in the United States, and to a lesser extent in Liberia and Japan. It hears evidence and testimony to decide whether probable cause exists to bring charges, and in some jurisdictions a civil grand jury also acts as a watchdog over government institutions; a United States federal grand jury typically has sixteen to twenty-three members, larger than the trial, or petit, jury that later hears a case.