O.C.G.A. § 15-12-68 (2019)
Oath of witnesses
(a) The following oath shall be administered to all witnesses in criminal cases before the grand jury: ‘‘Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the evidence you shall give the grand jury on this bill of indictment or presentment shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth? So help you God.’’ (b) Any oath given that substantially complies with the language in this Code section shall subject the witness to the provisions of Code Section 16-10-70. (Cobb’s 1851 Digest, p. 836; Code 1863, § 4538; Code 1868, § 4558; Code 1873, § 4652; Code 1882, § 4652; Penal Code 1895, § 834; Penal Code 1910, § 838; Code 1933, § 59-211; Ga. L. 1997, p. 1499, § 1; Ga. L. 2010, p. 862, § 1/SB 313.)
Annotations
JUDICIAL DECISIONS Inapplicable to civil investigations. - O.C.G.A. § 15-12-68 is irrelevant to civil investigations conducted pursuant to O.C.G.A. §§ 15-12-71 and/or 15-12-100 et seq. State v. Bartel, 223 Ga. App. 696, 479 S.E.2d 4 (1996). Witnesses must be sworn. - Witnesses testifying before grand jury must be administered oath, and the grand jury cannot return a true bill except upon the testimony of a witness to whom the statutory oath has been administered. Reaves v. State, 242 Ga. 542, 250 S.E.2d 376 (1978). Oath not in language of section. - It is not a ground for a new trial that the indictment is void because the oath administered to the witnesses before the grand jury, under whose evidence the indictment was found, was not in the language of this section. Gossitt v. State, 182 Ga. 535, 186 S.E. 417 (1936).
Even if the requisite oath is not administered in accordance with O.C.G.A. § 15-12-68, this does not entitle the defendant to a new trial. Robinson v. State, 221 Ga. App. 865, 473 S.E.2d 519 (1996). Provisions of this section were met after the witnesses were sworn to give true evidence as to identical persons and matters contained in presentment in which they returned true bill and it is obvious that defendants were to be charged with some of the offenses stated in the original presentment. Beckman v. State, 229 Ga. 327, 190 S.E.2d 906 (1972). Oath given to a grand jury witness was deficient since the oath did not state whether the state was seeking a bill of indictment or presentment and it did not ‘‘state the case’’ by informing the witness of the offense the accused was supposed to have committed. State v. Williams, 181 Ga. App. 204, 351 S.E.2d 727 (1986);
Inman v. State, 187 Ga. App. 652, 371 S.E.2d 230 (1988).
Cited in Aldridge v. State, 39 Ga. App. 484, 147 S.E. 414 (1929).
OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL Perjury. - Witness who appears before a grand jury without knowledge of the name of the accused or the specific offense charged in the bill of indictment and who
is not administered the statutory oath is not subject to penalties or perjury for falsely testifying before such grand jury. 1987 Op. Att’y Gen. No. U87-20.
RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. - 38 Am. Jur. 2d, Grand Jury, § 55. C.J.S. - 38A C.J.S., Grand Juries, §§ 56, 57, 58.
ALR. - Failure to swear or irregularity in swearing witnesses appearing before grand jury as ground for dismissal of indictment, 23 ALR4th 154.