The Concurrent Grand Jury reported that it more than doubled the cases it heard compared to the prior session.
Foreman Hugh Moore said the credit was given to prosecutor Kate Lavery for working closely with police departments to efficiently line up the cases.
Here is the full report:
Concurrent Grand Jury adapts to COVID-19
Several jurors were absent from sessions because of COVID-19 illness or exposure, but because we had six alternate Jurors available this term, we never had a problem obtaining a quorum. The addition of two additional alternates (in addition to the four as selected at previous terms) was a great assistance in finding enough Jurors to provide a full Jury for each session. We recommend that the Clerk continue this practice of the selection of six alternate Jurors for each panel.
Cases Presented
This Concurrent Grand Jury heard an incredible total of almost 500 cases, more than twice as many cases as were heard during the January – April, 2022 term. (There were 389 true bills, 83 presentments, and six no bills, for a total of 478 cases.)
This extraordinary amount of accomplishment is almost totally the result of the diligent and creative work of Assistant District Attorney Kate Lavery, who is assigned to the Concurrent Grand Jury. She has contacted and worked with each of the suburban law enforcement jurisdictions to encourage them to designate one representative to handle as many cases as possible, at one time, from each department. (The Chattanooga Police Department is the leader in this respect. Sgt. April Bolton collects as many as 20 cases from various CPD officers to present each week. She and the CPD deserve gold stars.) ADA Lavery has also worked to review the oldest cases on the Grand Jury docket, to determine whether the arresting officer is still available, and to then see that either the arresting officer is encouraged to present her/his cases, or to see that the case is reassigned to a current officer. Whereas in the past the Jury has adjourned very early in the afternoon because of no witnesses being present, this Jury often worked a full day, from 9:00 am until 4:00 pm, hearing and ruling upon cases. ADA Lavery's outstanding work in this regard must be commended.
Past juries have often complained about the inefficient use of their time. Not this Jury. They worked hard, and were glad to do so.
Inspections of Facilities
Because of COVID-19 and security issues, the Concurrent Grand Jury was not able to inspect and report upon conditions at the Silverdale Correctional Facility, or the Hamilton County Juvenile Court Facility. Perhaps these inspections can resume in 2023.
Presentations from Judges and others
A highlight for each Concurrent Grand Jury is that Judges and other officials take the time out of their schedules to speak with the jury, and answer questions. Very few of the Jurors have any familiarity with the criminal justice system. These presentations allow the Jurors to meet and talk with people in a forum that won't be available to them again. This term Sheriff Jim Hammond, Criminal Court Judges Barry Steelman, Don Poole, and Tom Greenholtz, and General Sessions Judge Alex McVeigh, each made well received and much appreciated appearances before the Concurrent Grand Jury.
Law Enforcement
The Jurors heard presentations from scores of law enforcement personnel, from almost every agency within Hamilton County. They were impressed with the professionalism of the individuals, and also by the technical expertise and assets available.
One Juror specifically commented on a negative political wristband visibly worn by one testifying officer (see below). The same negative phrase was displayed for a time on a magnet prominently positioned in the Grand Jury waiting room. Individual jurisdictions can determine how to handle this, but at least one Juror found this "totally inappropriate." A second Juror noticed and commented on the wristband after a Jury session.
Comments from Grand Jurors
Each term members of the Concurrent Grand Jury are encouraged to prepare submissions to be included in the Report. Those submissions for this Term are:
**
Thank you for the opportunity to be a Grand Juror. It was a pleasure to meet everyone. I have learned a lot in reference to how law enforcement looks at evidence and also the new changes in some of the laws. I pray for safety for our officers as they risk their lives to ensure our safety, again thank you GOD BLESS.
**
In my time on the Grand Jury we heard cases from just about every law enforcement agency in the county. I was consistently impressed with the professionalism of all of the officers testifying before us. I was particularly impressed by the painstaking and intricate detective work that went into unraveling several very complex cases. The persistence and attention to detail shown by these officers is remarkable.
The overwhelming volume of cases amazed me in our criminal court system. Some days it felt like no matter how many cases we heard, we barely made a dent in the stack of cases waiting to be presented. The general public only sees or hears about the headline cases, but not the hundreds of cases that are just as important, but fly under the radar.
One common problem was the long turnaround time for lab results from the TBI crime lab. There is probably no easy solution, but it does seem to delay the final resolution of many cases.
We didn’t get to do any of the normal tours due to Covid and other safety concerns. A good future tour would be the real time intelligence center (RTIC) since it played a prominent role in several of the cases we heard. Several of the judges gave presentations that really helped us to understand the role and importance of the grand jury system. Since a number of our cases had a gang association, it would be good to have the director of the CPD Gang Unit provide a briefing for the next Grand Jury.
At some future point, I hope that our successor Grand Jurors will get an increase in pay. The current $13/day doesn’t even cover the cost of driving in and lunch each day. Jurors shouldn’t lose money while providing such a critically important service to the community.
And last, but certainly not least, we could not possibly have accomplished all that we did without the organization and leadership of Kate Lavery, ADA and Hugh Moore, Grand Jury Foreman. Having an ADA available to us to interpret the applicable laws was invaluable, and Mr. Moore kept us staffed and provided very effective direction.
**
Thank you it was a privilege to be a member of the Grand Jury. ADA Kate Lavery was pivotal to our success. Thank you again.
**
While I have served on numerous juries in my life, this was my first time on a Grand Jury. And, I have to say this Grand Jury experience was far more interesting and educational. Several of the presenters opened my eyes on just how bad people can be, and the amount and severity of crime these officers see every day and how they work across departments to help each other. The service that the Foreperson and ADA Kate Lavery provided to members of the Grand Jury was / is invaluable to help guide us and understand the process and our responsibilities as a grand Juror. I’m sorry to learn that the Grand Jury ADA position has been eliminated. I especially liked hearing from the Judges to get their perspective of what they see in court and gain a little understanding of their beliefs and thought process.
While we heard from many presenters, a smaller percentage really came prepared, presented their case, and answered questions from the jury members. A larger percentage of presenters were less prepared and seemed to struggle in their presentations. It might be that they’re uncomfortable presenting, didn’t have time to review the case, or that they were there just to check the box. A recommended improvement would be to provide guidance / training on what to do prior to presenting, or teach them how to present.
I would like to see more presentations that are special from all the judges and possibility include some from other assistant DA’s and maybe even the Current DA. Hearing from Sheriff Hammond was great and hopefully the new sheriff will be able to make an appearance with each Grand Jury. Maybe also include the Chief of Police, or one of their deputies, from each of the smaller communities.
The one negative I have is that one presenter was wearing a wristband that said “Let’s Go Brandon”. While I support freedom of speech and support of whatever political party you support, I think wearing that band in a formal setting like the courthouse was totally inappropriate.
Again, I would like to thank the Foreperson and ADA Kate Lavery for everything they have done. It has been a pleasure to work with them.
**
It has been my honor and privilege to serve my fellow citizens of Hamilton County as a member of the Grand Jury the last four months, (May-August). But, before I get into my thoughts about the term itself, I think there is something about me that I should mention. I have a disability, and because of this, I use a wheelchair. For the most part, I don’t let my disability stop me from living the life of a normal 27-year-old. In fact, on the whole it didn’t really affect my jury experience. In fact, my jury service made me realize something that because of my disability I wouldn’t have realized otherwise. But, I will get into that a little later. There was one aspect of my service where my disability did cause some issues however. That was in the accessibility of certain areas of courthouse. Such as being able to use certain restrooms, and parking arrangements. I am not going to spend time on those concerns at this time because I have already voiced those concerns to Jury Foreperson Hugh Moore, in a separate letter that appears at the conclusion of these comments. I would just ask that there be more consideration on ways in which grand and petit jury service can be made easier for disabled citizens like myself who wish to fulfill their civic duty. Now here are some thoughts on my experience.
As I have previously stated overall my experience was great. For the first time in a while I felt like I was making a real difference and impact. There are, however, some things that I think can be, or should be added so that the job for future jurors is easier. First off, I don’t think $13 a day is very fair compensation for jurors in the state. Especially for example those of us who live in Hamilton County like myself who are employed in nearby Georgia. Where employers are not required to follow the Tennessee law which requires employers to pay employees their normal rate while they serve as a juror. So if raising juror pay is not possible, might I suggest that the state consider approaching those states, which border our great state with proposals that might suggest that upon bringing in proof that they are indeed serving as a juror that employers would pay those citizens their normal rate.
The next thing that I think could be better is a more recent occurrence in the term, and is more of a county issue than one of the state, However it is my opinion that they could learn from this as well. Coming into my service I had no legal background whatsoever. Which I understand is one of the main points of this country’s legal system. That being said I was a little nervous at beginning of my service, because I did not want my lack of knowledge of either the law itself, or the language within it to be the reason that I voted not to send something to criminal court that needed to be there, or vice versa. Therefore, I was relieved to learn upon selection that there was a Grand Jury Prosecutor who was assigned to our jury, and who would be in the room with us. Even if it was only during testimony, we had someone there to help us cut through any legal sludge we might get bogged down in. Where is the problem in that you may ask? That itself is not the problem. For those who might not be familiar, we were told that the Grand Jury prosecutor position would be eliminated. It is my guess that the elimination is taking place in order to try to streamline and speed up the system. I, and my fellow jurors have seen that the system is backed up due Covid, and other things. Now I don’t know how the prosecutor position on the Grand Jury will be handled. So please just take this as a citizen voicing concern. In my opinion, eliminating the position is not the way to make the system better. Why do I think that? I think not having the position is a bad idea for the exact reasons I was relieved to have it when my term started. Because what is going to happen if someone can’t explain the legal sludge?
As I conclude my there are two things I want quickly share. Throughout the process to many aspects of the legal system. Both in Criminal and Sessions court. Including the drug and mental health courts. I wish that I had gotten to spend more time observing in the actual courtrooms. Because those observations and my interactions with staff members in different areas of the courthouse I believe made me a better juror.
Lastly, I grew up a military brat so service to country and community were taught as early as I can remember. Which is actually why on selection I volunteered to sit on the jury. But, serving on the jury actually did more for me than I was expecting at the beginning. Like many other little boys at one point, I wanted to grow up, and be a policeman. However, because of my disability I found out quickly that being a police officer was probably not going to happen. Fast-forward to now my time as a juror, and all those interactions and observations have shown me that a career somewhere in Law enforcement or the justice system in general is possible for a disabled guy like me. So, I am going to start making plans to take the plunge. In short, it has be an honor and a privilege to serve my community.
Mr. Hugh Moore, Grand Jury Foreperson:
Being the only person in a wheelchair during this session of the Grand Jury, I have seen a couple of things that could be improved on to make it easier for a handicap person to get into and around inside the building. One major thing, but something that would be an easy fix, would be to have Handicap Loading/Unloading Zone at the entrance on Cherry Street. My Grandfather brings me and picks me up each day. The way everything is set up outside, he must try to pull into the space at the camp blocking the cross walk coming from the parking deck. If he can't pull in far enough, there is a possibility of blocking traffic on Cherry Street, which is not good. The alternative is to pull down to the entrance to the controlled parking lot and block one of those gated entrances for a few minutes. Problem with that spot is, since it is sloped downhill, I need help getting back up to the entrance.
The solution would be to take the last two parking spaces prior to the Cherry Street entrance and make them a Handicap Loading / Unloading Zone. I emphasize prior to because it needs to be on as level a surface as possible. The present curbing would need to be ramped for a wheelchair like the ramp at the crosswalk coming from the parking deck. Stripe it off in blue and add a couple of signs stating "No Parking, Handicap Loading/Unloading Only, 10 Minute Maximum Time."
I appreciate you reading this and any consideration that you might give to it. People like me that have to be in a wheelchair still want to work and make their own way, or like I am doing now, take pride in doing their civic duty. However, at times, the hardest part of our day is getting into or out of the place we need to be. This Loading/Unloading Zone would make it so much easier for handicap folks in the future.
Thank you,
**
I've always wanted to serve on jury duty so when I was summoned, I was very excited. I didn't know what the Grand Jury did. It was very interesting. The officers did excellent research and made great presentations. Hugh Moore, the Foreperson, and Kate Lavery, the ADA, were very organized, professional and helpful. Everyone was very nice and appreciative. The judges were very thorough in explaining everything that was happening when some of us went into their court to see some cases. I found the mental recovery court very interesting.
I think the Grand Jury should make more money especially with the inflation of gas prices and food if you needed to go out to get lunch. I have enjoyed my time on the Grand Jury and would be interested in the foreman job when I am able to retire from my full-time job. Thank you!
Conclusion
The Jury extends its thanks and best wishes to Assistant District Attorneys Kate Lavery and Jerry Sloan. Their experience and their able and skilled assistance is what makes the Grand Jury process run so smoothly. The Jury appreciated the always pleasant and polite assistance provided by Don Klasing, who handles the introduction and presentation of witnesses. As always, Larry Henry and his outstanding staff in the Circuit Court Clerk's Office (Margo McConnell) supported the Jury in every way.