Stanislaus County looking for residents to serve on civil grand jury

MODESTO -- The Stanislaus County Superior Court is looking for qualified residents to serve on the 2013-14 civil grand jury.

The deadline for applications to serve on the grand jury is April 30.

Qualified applicants will be interviewed by Presiding Judge Loretta Begen, Assistant Presiding Judge Nan Cohan Jacobs and the court's executive officer.

The primary function of the grand jury is to act as a public "watchdog" by investigating and issuing reports about local government agencies that include county and city government, special districts and school districts.

From those interviewed, Begen will choose 30 finalists. Then, a 19-member grand jury panel with four alternates will be selected in open court by a random selection process.

Grand jurors must meet the same qualifications as a trial juror, and the term for a grand juror is one year — July 1 to June 30. The selected grand jurors must be available at least 20 hours per month.

Anyone interested in serving on the grand jury can call the grand jury office at (209) 558-7766 or go to www.stanct.org to download an application.