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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
HOUSE BILL 1568 By: Duel
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to criminal procedure; amending 22
O.S. 2021, Section 340, which relates to procedures
for advising grand juries; providing limitations on
the use of grand jury transcripts; establishing
notice and hearing procedures for releasing grand
jury transcripts; making hearings closed to the
public; providing an exception; providing limitations
on representing certain parties; allowin g
prosecutions concurrent to civil litigation related
to grand jury transcript s; allowing the disclosure of
transcribed testimony to witnesses under certain
circumstances; making witnesses subject to
restrictions on disclosure; providing penalties for
violations; and providing an effective date .
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 22 O.S. 2021, Section 340, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 340. A. The grand jury may at al l reasonable times ask
the advice of the court or of the district attorney. I n no event
shall the grand jury be advised as to the sufficiency or
insufficiency of the evidence necessary to return a true bill, in a
matter under investigation before them. T he district attorney, with
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or without a regularly appointed assistant district attorney
individually or collectively, or if the district attorney and all of
his or her assistants are disqualified for any reason, a district
attorney or assistant district at torney from another district,
appointed by the Attorney General of Oklahoma pu rsuant to Sections
215.9 and 215.13 of Title 19 of the Oklahoma Statutes, and where
proper, the Attorney General, or an assistant attorney general, may
at all times appear before the grand jury for the purpose of giving
information or advice relative to any matter cognizable before them
and may interrogate witnesses before them whenever he or she thinks
it necessary. A qualified court reporter shall be present and take
the testimony of all witnesses.
B. Upon request, a transcript of the testimony or any p ortion
thereof shall be made available to an the attorney for the accused
or, the district attorney , assistant district attorney , the attorney
general, or assistant attorney gene ral, at the expense of the
requesting party or officer , and, in. In the event of an indigent
accused, at the expense of for the transcript shall be borne by the
state in the same manner and from the same funds as indigent
representation. Any attorney or other person who obtains a copy of
a grand jury transcript shall not reproduce the transcript in whole
or in part or otherwise disclose be prohibited from disclosing its
contents to any person other than his or her attorney without leave
of in the court criminal proceeding, related asset forfeiture
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proceeding, or removal proceeding . A transcript obtained pursuant
to this subsection shall not be used for any purpose other than in
proceedings relating to the grand jury testimony, civil asset
forfeiture proceedings related to an indictment from the grand jury,
or an accusation for remo val of a public official from the grand
jury, or in preparation for those proceedings, without good cause
shown supported by clear and convincing evidence after written
motion and hearing before the judge presiding over the grand jury.
The prosecutor serving as a legal advisor to the grand jury shall
receive timely notice of the motion and hearing and be allowed an
opportunity to object to any order of release of grand jury
transcripts. The pleadings relating to a request for grand jury
transcripts shall be sealed and any hearing held pursuant to a
request for grand jury transcripts shall be closed to the public
unless the presiding judge of the grand jury finds that the public
interest in unsealing the pleadings or opening the hearing to the
public outweighs the public interest in maintaining the secrecy of
the grand jury investigation. Except in a civil asset forfeiture
proceeding related to a grand jury indictment, an attorney who
obtains a copy of a grand jury transcript pursuant to this
subsection shall be precluded from representing any party in a civil
case related to the grand jury testimony or using the grand jury
transcripts to the benefit or detriment of a party in a ci vil
proceeding. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the attorney
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general or a district attorney from prosecuting an indictment or
accusation for removal while his or her office is or has been
engaged in related civil litigation provided that the gra nd jury
transcripts or its contents are not provided or disclosed to the
staff of the attorney general or district attorney involved in the
civil litigation. Nor does this subsection prohibit the attorney
for the accused, district attorney, assistant dist rict attorney, the
attorney general, or assistant attorney general from providing to a
witness the transcribed grand jury testimony of that witness for the
sole purpose of preparing the witness for his or her subsequent
testimony at a trial or hearing aris ing out of a grand jury
indictment, accusation for removal, or civil asset for feiture action
related to a grand jury indictment. The witness who is provided a
transcript of his or her testimony shall be subject to the same
restrictions on disclosure as an y other person. Violation of this
provision subsection shall be a misdemeanor and may also be
punishable as contempt. Provided, nothing in this section shall
prohibit the attorney for the accused, the district attorney or
assistant district attorney from reproducing in whole or in part the
transcribed testimony of a witness he or she anticipates calling to
testify at trial and providing same to said witness for the sole
purpose of preparing for trial.
C. No other person is permitted to be present during sessions
of the grand jury except the members of the grand jury, the witness
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actually under examination, and one attorney representing such
witness, except that an interpreter, when necessary, may be present
during the interrogation of a witness; provided that, no person,
except the members of the grand jury, shall be permitted to b e
present during the expression of juror opinions or the giving of
votes upon any matter before the grand jury; provided further that
neither the district attorney, nor an assist ant district attorney,
may be present or participate in an official capacity, as herein
provided, during an investigation by the grand jury of the district
attorney's office, or of any person officially associated with said
office.
SECTION 2. This act shall become effective November 1, 2025.
60-1-10638 GRS 01/02/25