Court allows charter school founders access to grand jury transcripts

• Court of Appeals allows founders of charter school to use secret grand jury transcripts in lawsuit against state Attorney General’s Office • Grand jury transcripts usually kept secret to protect witnesses and prevent negative publicity for accused • The federal judge will assess whether the defendants have a particularized need for the transcripts

The founders of a charter school may be able to use secret grand jury transcripts to sue the state Attorney General’s Office, the Court of Appeals has said.

In a new ruling, the three-judge panel acknowledged that such documents are normally kept from the public to protect everyone, from witnesses to those named in the indictment.

However, appellate Judge David Weinzweig, writing the unanimous decision, stated that this is not absolute.