Legal Question in Criminal Law in Virginia

I am not sure I understand your question. What role will you be playing in the grand jury proceeding?

This system makes it difficult to clarify a question and then answer it. So you can write me at: [email protected]

Sadly, an accused person has little or no rights in a grand jury proceeding, unless you are being called as a witness as well as being accused.

Therefore, if the prosecutor is not expecting to call you as a witness, you may not have any grounds or basis for a postponement. That is, the proceedings can go on without you.

However, if you are going to play a role in the proceedings, then you are certainly entitled to an attorney of your own choosing.

There is no harm in sending a letter to the prosecutor requesting a postponement while you get another attorney.

Do not tell the prosecutor anything about what is going on between you and the attorney. You don't want to tell the prosecutor anything that might help his side.

You might also ask the Clerk how you can send aletter to the foreman of the grand jury. They will probably not give you a name, but you can send it by the title alone.

Attorneys will reflexively recommend, if not insist, that an accused person NOT testify in a grand jury investigating them.

It is almost never a good idea to say anything or testify in any proceeding in which you are under investigation or might be accused of something.

First, the problem is not what you say. The problem is how the things that you can say might be MISREPRESENTED, twisted, and mis-remembered. The worst of it is that what you say might not be repeated accurately in later proceedings.

Second, if you waive your Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination you will probably waive it on the ENTIRE topic and FOREVER.

SO you cannot just pick and choose what questions you want to answer. If you say anything at all, you will need to answer ALL questions on that topic or related topics, even questions that are harmful to you.

Third, it is very hard to keep a grand jury from indicting someone. So your efforts to try to defuse a grand jury will probably fail.

The rules and procedures are stacked in the prosecutor's favor. So there is very little chance of helping yourself (I am assuming you are the accused or might be accused) and a far, far greater risk of causing yourself harm.

You should probably invoke your Fifth Amendment rights and not testify, if that is being suggested.

People may think they will persuade the grand jury. But the risk is too great. The deck is stacked against it.

Again, I am not sure I understand what role you might play in the grand jury or anything about hte isuses.

But if you would like to discuss this and consider my help as a replacement attorney, give me a call at (703) 656-1230.

I am based in Reston, Virginia (Fairfax) but frequently appear all the way down to Richmond. I will be in Richmond late APril 13 for a hearing on April 15 in the morning.