Conn. Gen. Stat. » Title 54 — CRIMINAL PROCEDURE · Chapter 960 — Information, Procedure and Bail
Connecticut General Statutes

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 54-45 (2026)

When grand jury is required. Selecting grand jury. Alternate grand jurors

✓ current as of May 2026
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(a) The Superior Court may, when necessary, order a grand jury of eighteen electors of the judicial district where said court is sitting to be summoned, impaneled and sworn to inquire after and present such offenses as are cognizable by said court. Said court may, in its discretion, order one or two additional electors to be added to the grand jury as alternate grand jurors. Such alternate jurors shall be sworn separately from those constituting the regular panel and shall not counsel or confer with members of the regular panel as to any matters before the grand jury unless they become a part of the regular panel as hereinafter provided. They shall attend the sessions of the grand jury and shall be seated with or near the members of the regular panel, with equal opportunity to see and hear all matters adduced in the proceedings. If for any reason a grand juror is unable to further perform his duty, the court may excuse him and, if any grand juror is so excused or dies, the court may order that the alternate juror or, if more than one, that one who is designated by lot drawn by the clerk of the Superior Court, shall become a part of the regular panel and the inquiry shall then proceed as though such grand juror had been a member of the regular panel from the beginning of the inquiry.

(b) No person shall be put to plea or held to trial for any crime the punishment of which may be death or imprisonment for life, charged by the state before May 26, 1983, unless an indictment has been found against him for such crime by a grand jury legally impaneled and sworn, and no bill shall be presented by any grand jury unless at least twelve of the jurors agree to it.

(1949 Rev., S. 8747; February, 1965, P.A. 173; P.A. 73-116, S. 1; 73-667, S. 1, 2; P.A. 78-280, S. 2, 127; P.A. 80-313, S. 3; P.A. 83-210, S. 3, 5.)

History: 1965 act added provisions for alternate grand jurors; P.A. 73-116 added reference to judicial districts; P.A. 73-667 changed effective date of P.A. 73-116 from October 1, 1973, to April 25, 1973; P.A. 78-280 deleted reference to counties; P.A. 80-313 divided section into Subsecs; P.A. 83-210 amended Subsec. (b) to require a grand jury indictment for crimes punishable by death or imprisonment for life “charged by the state before May 26, 1983” to reflect the establishment of a probable cause hearing pursuant to Sec. 54-46a in place of a grand jury proceeding for persons accused of such crimes.

See Sec. 1-25 re forms of oaths for jurors.

Powers and duties of grand jury. 1 C. 428. Where death or imprisonment for life is not penalty, no grand jury necessary. 3 C. 112. Inquiry before grand jury must be secret. 16 C. 467. Not necessary that accused be present. 21 C. 279. Quaere, whether member of grand jury may be challenged for favor; if absolute disqualification is discovered after indictment found, it may be pleaded in avoidance. 47 C. 106. The endorsement of a “true bill” on an indictment cannot be contradicted by parol evidence on habeas corpus proceedings; 67 C. 553; and, in habeas corpus proceedings in U.S. courts, failure to so endorse is not regarded. 160 U.S. 231. When required, an interpreter may be present in the grand jury room. 106 C. 721. When an accused person is confined for a crime punishable by death or life imprisonment, it is the duty of the court to order a grand jury; and this may be done before opening of term to which accused was bound over. Id., 719. When court may select members of grand jury. 126 C. 64. In a general investigation by grand jury, state's attorney may be present to aid in examination of witnesses. Id., 66. Jury may have stenographer present; what evidence jury may elicit. Id., 71. Constitution does not protect a person from being questioned by grand jury but only gives immunity from answering particular questions; history and nature of grand jury. Id., 72. Cited. 135 C. 269. Requires an indictment by a grand jury in all cases in which the penalty to be imposed may be life imprisonment. 144 C. 295. Grand jury in which 7 out of 18 are attorneys not in itself illegal where there is no evidence of an intentional and systematic exclusion of any group. 146 C. 137. Cited. Id., 227; 153 C. 325. There is no federal constitutional impediment to dispensing entirely with grand jury in state prosecutions. 155 C. 367. In absence of contrary evidence, presumption arises that selection of grand jury was made without discrimination and fairly by officer in charge of selection. 158 C. 341. Cited. 159 C. 264; 164 C. 402; 176 C. 270; 181 C. 268; 183 C. 299; 184 C. 597. Presence of counsel before grand jury discussed; grand jury transcript available to defendant under Subsec. (a) is made available under the inherent supervisory powers of the Superior Court and evidentiary uses of it by defendant are restricted to impeaching a witness, attacking the credibility of a witness or proving inconsistent statements of a witness. 187 C. 281. Trial court's denial of motion to quash the ordering of second grand jury is not one of those few presentence orders deemed final for purposes of appeal. 191 C. 27. During period between November 24, 1982, and May 26, 1983, statute provided authorization for use of grand juries in cases punishable by death or life imprisonment. 192 C. 671. Cited. Id., 700; 194 C. 416; Id., 692; 197 C. 247; Id., 280; Id., 507; 199 C. 163; 202 C. 18; 203 C. 641; 204 C. 259; 207 C. 276; 226 C. 601.

Cited. 4 CA 544; 10 CA 103; 27 CA 643; Id., 675.

Cited. 6 CS 221; 22 CS 6, 7. Person not given right to counsel before grand jury decision; this is not “critical stage” in proceedings against him. 25 CS 61. Grand jury is not prohibited from receiving hearsay evidence; that such evidence may have been considered by the grand jury would not entitle one who had been indicted to have the indictment quashed. Id., 388. Counsel for the accused may not accompany him before the grand jury. Id., 389. Section was fully complied with by the court and its officers in summoning grand jury in absence of a showing that any of the members were disqualified for any reason. 26 CS 211. Nature of grand jury discussed; not the state's burden to prove that the method of selection of grand jury was fair and nondiscriminatory. Id., 213. Charge to grand jury that presumption of sanity was adequate basis on which to find, so far as element of soundness of mind was concerned, probable cause to hold accused for trial, was accurate; constitutional right of accused to counsel does not include representation by counsel before a grand jury. Id., 214. Indictment insufficient in law may be attacked by demurrer; provision that grand jurors come from county where court sits is broad enough to comply with federal constitutional requirement that there must be no intentional or systematic exclusion of group or class from grand jury. 29 CS 119. Exclusion of aliens from grand jury service does not make statute unconstitutional since citizenship requirement bears rational relationship to demands of jury service. 35 CS 98. Cited. 36 CS 141; 45 CS 1.

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Notes of Decisions
Cited in 38 cases, 1956–1997 · leading case: State v. Curcio, 463 A.2d 566 (Conn. 1983).
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State v. Curcio, 463 A.2d 566 (Conn. 1983). · cites it 12× “General Statutes § 54-45, 4 since repealed, was in effect at the time of these proceedings.”
State v. Sanabria, 474 A.2d 760 (Conn. 1984). · cites it 16× “” General Statutes § 54-45 (b). Subsection (a) of that statute set out, inter alia, procedures by which grand juries should be summoned, impaneled and sworn, and how they should conduct themselves.”
State v. Morrill, 498 A.2d 76 (Conn. 1985). · cites it 4× “” This list included the names of the defendant, his mother and his father.”
State v. Menillo, 268 A.2d 667 (Conn. 1970). · cites it 8× “The state's attorney lays before the court a bill of indictment for murder, specifying whether in the first or second degree; the court orders a grand jury to be summoned to consider it; the state's attorney submits *274 a list of witnesses, but neither he nor any counsel for…”
State v. McGann, 506 A.2d 109 (Conn. 1986). · cites it 4× “” The defendant excepted to this instruction, referring specifically to the prohibition in Practice Book § 609 against the presence of anyone but the grand jurors during deliberations, but the court refused to correct it, construing General Statutes § 54-45 to allow the…”
State v. Stepney, 435 A.2d 701 (Conn. 1980). · cites it 6× “General Statutes § 54-45 provides in pertinent part: “The superior court may, when necessary, order a grand jury of eighteen electors of the judicial district where said court is sitting to be summoned, impaneled and sworn to inquire after and present such offenses as are…”
State v. Magnano, 528 A.2d 760 (Conn. 1987). · cites it 2× “On January 27, *273 1983, a grand jury was convened, pursuant to General Statutes § 54-45 (a), regarding the death of James Magnano.”
State v. Moynahan, 325 A.2d 199 (Conn. 1973). · cites it 3× “General Statutes § 54-47, enacted in 1941, provides for a one-man investigation significantly different from the constitutional grand jury empowered to indict under General Statutes § 54-45. Since Lung’s Case, 1 Conn.”
State v. Cohane, 479 A.2d 763 (Conn. 1984). · cites it 2× “At the time, article first, § 8 of the Connecticut constitution and General Statutes § 54-45 required a grand jury indictment as a precondition to trial for all charges punishable by death or life imprisonment.”
State v. Secore, 485 A.2d 1280 (Conn. 1984). · cites it 4× “”); 5 General Statutes § 54-45 (b) (“No person shall be put to plea or held to trial for any crime the punishment of which may be death or imprisonment for life unless an indictment has been found against him for such crime by a grand jury .”
State v. Castonguay, 481 A.2d 56 (Conn. 1984). · cites it 2× “” Turning to the third prong of Duren, the court found that the major cause of Hispanic underrepresentation is the requirement of General Statutes § 54-45 that grand jurors be electors.”
State v. Canady, 445 A.2d 895 (Conn. 1982). · cites it 3× “Alternate Grand Juror For the first time on appeal, the defendant claims that an alternate grand juror, in asking a question of a witness at the grand jury proceeding, violated the stricture of General Statutes § 54-45 (a) 6 against an alternate grand juror’s counseling or…”
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