For months, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Robert McCulloch has promised to seek a court order immediately releasing nearly all evidence before the grand jury in the Michael Brown shooting case if Officer Darren Wilson is not indicted, says the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He has said that the judge overseeing the grand jury, Carolyn Whittington, has agreed to order such release if requested. With the grand jury's decision expected this week, the county court's top administrator said no such agreement exists.
Court Administrator Paul Fox said Whittington will have to “analyze the need for maintaining secrecy of the records with the need for public disclosure of the records.” Last week, McCulloch's office sent emails to dozens of news reporters from around the nation about how they will be able to access grand-jury documents and testimony on a website if there is no indictment in the case. It is unclear if the court's statement reflects a dramatic change in expectations for what evidence will be made public in the closely watched case. It also could signal a potential delay in the release of evidence or just an attempt to distinguish the independent roles of the prosecutor's office and the court.