Tag: grand jury indictment

As the world laid to rest Nelson “Madiba” Mandela, who was wrongfully incarcerated for 27 years, I thought about the case of Bobby McClelland. He was arrested 23 years ago on May 19, 1990, for an alleged attempted murder and processed through the same Los Angeles County Jail that was recently indicted on 18 federal counts for, amongst other things, obstruction of justice.

The 1876 Colorado Bill of Rights makes it very clear that all Colorado citizens can only be charged and prosecuted for infamous crimes – felonies that warrant prison time – by grand jury indictment. This venerable process protects the accused from prosecutorial misconduct and it requires a minimum evidentiary basis for a felony charge to be initiated at all.