Hypothetical: I am the prosecutor for a case being investigated by a grand jury. Uncooperative witness is subpoenaed to grand jury. In the grand jury, witness provides testimony that establishes probable cause to believe that physical evidence is located in a particular private residence at the current time. Upon leaving grand jury room, witness refuses to answer any further questions from me or other invetigators.

Assuming the only information I have to support the conclusion that the evidence is to be found at the stated location, can I obtain a search warrant based on the testimony given in the grand jury proceedings? Art. 20.02 says I can disclose it to do my duty, but I have to inform any person to whom I disclose it that it is secret. I could tell the judge who issues the search warrant not to disclose the information, but the PC affidavit is supposed to be a public record.

Any thoughts?

have the affiant disclose the facts but not that the source of those facts was grand jury testimony

To be on the safe side, I would attach an order to the search warrant affadavit for the judge to sign ordering disclosure of the grand jury testimony. Once the information is in the affadavit and the affadavit is executed, all of the information in the affadavit becomes public record. I would be reluctant to expose myself to the attack that I dad revealed secret grand jury testimony without a court order to do so.

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Originally posted by DJC:
have the affiant disclose the facts but not that the source of those facts was grand jury testimony

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I don't think that works. If that were the case, the oath of secrecy would be pretty hollow if all you had to do to talk about it was omit the fact that you were in the grand jury when you heard it.

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Originally posted by Shane Phelps:
To be on the safe side, I would attach an order to the search warrant affadavit for the judge to sign ordering disclosure of the grand jury testimony.

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Shane, does the judge have the authority to issue an order permitting the State to make grand jury testimony public? I know the defendant can ask for it to be disclosed, but I don't see a provision for the State to do the same thing.