Candidate for Merrimack County Sheriff
If you feel elections don’t change the fundamental problem with government – that there is no accountability – you aren’t alone. As a state representative (2022-24), I saw firsthand how state law was blatantly ignored and real oversight prevented by the bureaucratic establishment. Yet, there is an effective way to put corrupt politicians, bureaucrats, and corporations under oath and figure out what is really happening.
Our county Grand Juries are immensely powerful institutions that predate the creation of this country by hundreds of years. Traditionally, members were elected at Town Meeting. Paul Revere and Ebenezer Hancock were Grand Jurors in Boston and played an important role in galvanizing resistance to the Crown.
Today, the 23-members of the county Grand Jury are selected randomly (or so we are told) from the voter roll and driver’s license registry. They serve three days a month, for four months in Merrimack County. Troublingly, they are not fully informed of their investigatory role; they are only told of their accusatory role, which consists of approving or denying indictments brought by the County Attorney.
Through Divine Providence, I found a copy of the Grand Juror Handbook from 1978 in the State Library. At only 9 pages, this booklet packs a heavy punch. On page two we find this gem:
In addition to the duty of the Grand Jury to hear evidence and decide whether formal criminal charges should be made, the Grand Jury also has the important power to make investigations. The Grand Jury, on its own initiative, may on rare occasions subpoena witnesses to appear or compel the production of documents. This type of investigation is thereafter reported to the Court in what is called a Presentment or Report.
Why does the current video orientation from the 1980s omit this important information? It’s almost as if the “powers that ought not be” do not want pesky Grand Jurors launching investigations that may expose their criminal enterprises.
A well-documented episode of a county Grand Jury taking down a major criminal ring, that was being protected by the local district attorney, happened in the 1930s in NYC. The spirited foreman decided to go above the corrupt DA and demanded the governor appoint a special prosecutor. The subsequent investigation took down “Lucky” Luciano and a prostitution ring grossing $300 million in Today’s greatly devalued dollars.
A number of states already utilize this important tool to address citizen complaints. In California, the Penal Code requires the Grand Jury to:
- Inquire into the condition and management of the detention facilities within the County
- Investigate and report on the operations, accounts and records of county and other local public agencies, officers, departments or functions
- Inquire into the willful or corrupt misconduct in office of public officers, and,
- Submit a final report of its Findings and Recommendations no later than the end of its term to the Presiding Judge of the Superior Court.
It’s time for New Hampshire to be first in the nation when it comes to accountability.
Jason Gerhard is a Candidate for Merrimack County Sheriff
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