Judge Rebukes Prosecutors For ‘Unseemly’ Grand Jury Maneuver

A Washington federal magistrate judge excoriated Justice Department prosecutors for sidestepping the typical federal grand jury process in a move he said is “unseemly” and breaks with “decades-long norms.”

Zia Faruqui of the US District Court for the District of Columbia accused prosecutors in an order dated Tuesday of performing an “end run” around a federal grand jury in a gun possession case.

After the federal panel refused to indict, the US attorney’s office in DC turned to the city’s superior court grand jury, which returned the indictment.

Faruqui refused to accept the superior court’s grand jury indictment in a ...