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50 U. Chi. L. Rev. 613 (1983)
The Early History of the Grand Jury and the Canon Law

handle is hein.journals/uclr50 and id is 629 raw text is: The Early History of the Grand Jury and the Canon Law R.H. Helmholzt The modern grand jury traces its origins to the Assize of Clar- endon, an enactment of King Henry II in 1166.1 The Assize called for inquiry to be made, by the oath of *twelve men from every hun- dred and four men from every vill, as to what persons were pub- licly suspected of robbery, murder, or theft or of receiving men guilty of those crimes. The crimes covered were expanded ten years later by the Assize of Northampton to include forgery and arson,2 and over the course of succeeding years the group grew to include almost all serious crimes. Under the procedure called for by the Assize of Clarendon, the suspected criminals were presented before royal justices, and then their guilt or innocence was deter- mined by the judgment of God, that is, by ordeal. From this method of inquiry and presentment of persons suspected of serious crimes, later expanded and adapted to changed circumstances, grew the two-stage process of indictment and trial that we recog- nize as the essence of common law criminal procedure. The Assize has naturally attracted its share of scholarly atten- tion. Its centrality in the history of criminal procedure, as well as the mists of uncertainty that surround its adoption, its intent, and even the accuracy of the text that has come down to us, have made it a subject of interest for anyone curious about the development of our law. Bishop Stubbs regarded it as of the greatest impor- t Professor of Law, The University of Chicago. The author thanks Joseph Biancalana for commenting on an earlier draft of this article. I The text is printed in W. STBs, SELECT CHARTERS 170-73 (H.W.C. Davis 9th ed. 1913). An English translation appears in 2 ENGLISH HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS 1042-1189, at 407-10 (D. Douglas & G. Greenaway eds. 1953); 1 SoURcEs OF ENGLISH CONSTITUTIONAL His- TORY 76-80 (C. Stephenson & F. Marcham eds. 1972). The Assize was not a statute in the modern sense, but its authenticity as a genuine act of Henry II's government has been vindi- cated, despite attacks on the authenticity of its text. See Corner, The Texts of Henry M's Assizes, in LAW-MAKING AND LAw-MAKERS IN BRITISH HISTORY 7-20 (A. Harding ed. 1980); Holt, The Assizes of Henry II: the Texts, in THE STUDY OF MEDIEVAL RECORDS 85-106 (D. Bullough & R. Storey eds. 1971). The attack on the authenticity of the Assize was made by H. RICHARDSON & G. SAYLES, THE GOVERNANCE OF MEDIEVAL ENGLAND 438-44 (1963). 1 2 ENGLISH HISTORICAL DocuMzNTs 1042-1189, supra note 1, at 411-13; W. STUBBS, supra note 1, at 179.

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