State v. Hayes

The question as to whether an accused should be .allowed to inspect documents which are in the custody of the state’s attorney (whether they have come there through grand jury proceedings or otherwise), although it may at first blush seem to be similar to the question as to his right to inspect grand jury minutes, is in reality fundamentally different. The record of the testimony before the grand jury is not evidence admissible on the trial of the accused to prove the truth of facts testified to. Documents and records in the possession of the state’s attorney are, or at least may be,…