Currently, there are only six states in the United States that allow everyday citizens to bypass prosecutors and convene a criminal grand jury by circulating a petition.
Here is a breakdown of which states permit this process and how it works.
The ability to impanel a citizen-initiated grand jury is an extremely rare legal mechanism. As of today, the only states with laws allowing this process are Kansas, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, and Oklahoma.
In these six jurisdictions, if the public feels that local prosecutors are neglecting their duties, citizens can take action to trigger an official investigation.
In order to impanel a grand jury, citizens must organize formal petition drives and collect signatures. The requirements vary strictly by state:
Once the signatures are collected and the required threshold is met, a judge must summon a grand jury.
However, convening the jury does not guarantee an arrest. Once the grand jury is seated, the jurors investigate the alleged crime and independently decide whether or not charges can be brought against a suspect.
While most of the country relies solely on prosecutors or judges to initiate criminal proceedings, these six states empower their citizens with a direct check on the legal system. The citizen-petitioned grand jury remains a rare, but incredibly powerful, tool for enforcing public accountability.
