Grand juries serve as a crucial element of the criminal justice system, providing a platform where prosecutors can exercise considerable authority in determining whether their fellow citizens face charges. However, during President Trump’s administration, the Justice Department encountered significant obstacles when presenting cases to grand juries, leading to outcomes that were unimaginable just a year prior.

Recent incidents reveal numerous instances of grand jury misconduct, compounding the difficulties experienced by Justice Department prosecutors in securing indictments. Judges and grand juries have expressed diminishing confidence in the Justice Department, citing its role in rewarding allies of the president while targeting adversaries.

In recent months, prosecutors have consistently failed to convince grand juries that the cases brought before them justify criminal charges. This trend is concerning enough on its own, but it is coupled with criticisms from federal judges regarding prosecutorial conduct. Since last November, there have been at least three instances where judges have accused prosecutors of misconduct.

The latest of these setbacks occurred in Chicago, where charges against four Democratic activists, accused of obstructing the police during a protest at an immigration detention facility, were dismissed. Judge April M. Perry highlighted significant errors involving grand jury procedures as the basis for her decision. She pointed out that prosecutors had improperly conversed with grand jurors outside the grand jury room, a critical violation of protocol.

Further compounding the issue, prosecutors were noted for influencing grand jurors by improperly instructing them that the evidence presented was notably convincing. They also manipulated the grand jury’s composition by removing jurors who previously opposed their cases in earlier proceedings. To conceal these actions, they redacted grand jury transcripts before being compelled by Judge Perry to provide the unaltered copies.