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Evidence may remain sealed after Ferguson grand jury announces decision

"In order to analyze the need for maintaining secrecy, the Court will need information it does not have," officials say.

By Matt Bradwell

FERGUSON, Mo., Nov. 24 (UPI) -- While residents of Ferguson, Missouri, tensely await a grand jury's decision on whether to indict police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting death of unarmed teen Michael Brown, evidence and testimony from the yet-undecided hearings may not be made available to the public as previously promised.

"If there is not an indictment returned in any case, then the case is closed and the records are closed," St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch explained to reporters in late September.

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At the time, McCulloch had vowed to release all evidence presented to the grand jury if Wilson was not indicted.

"Unless the judge orders that they be opened. So in this case, we have asked the judge if there is no indictment returned, and no charge on anything, we have asked the judge, and she has agreed, that the records will be made public."

However, the St. Louis County Circuit Court says Circuit Judge Carolyn Whittington never agreed to publicize court records and would have to review the entire case after the grand jury has announced its decision, before deciding which information to release to the public.

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"In order to analyze the need for maintaining secrecy, the Court will need information it does not have," St. Louis County Director of Judicial Administration Paul Fox said in a statement.

"It does not know the names of the witnesses who have testified before the Grand Jury and it has not heard the testimony or read transcriptions of testimony. The Court has not seen documents or material presented to the Grand Jury."

Schools in the area closed early for the Thanksgiving holiday in anticipation of a decision by the grand jury. Jurors convened again Monday to review evidence. However, because they meet in secret, it is impossible to know the current progress of testimony and deliberations, although a decision has been considered imminent for over a week.

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