Credit: WIKIMEDIA
Today, Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor announced a new task force that will examine what improvements could be applied to the state’s grand jury system — and how those improvements might be implemented. 

The announcement comes on the heels of a Cuyahoga County judge forming a committee locally to review the grand jury process here. 

“To be clear, this task force is being asked to recommend ways to improve the functioning of grand juries and to see what additional steps can be taken to improve the public’s confidence in our justice system,” O’Connor said in a public statement. 

A national conversation about the public perception of grand jury protocol — and about the protocol itself here in Cuyahoga County — unfolded following a report last week that detailed confusion surrounding the grand jury in the Tamir Rice case. 

Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Stephen McIntosh will chair the task force. Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Steven Gall and Cleveland Municipal Court Judge Michelle Earley will join 15 other members, ranging from state politicians to law professors. 

This article appears in Jan 27 – Feb 2, 2016.

Eric Sandy is an award-winning Cleveland-based journalist. For a while, he was the managing editor of Scene. He now contributes jam band features every now and then.