§ 25-1668.Grand jury; potential jurors; how and when drawn; juror qualification form.
Article 16: Jurors and Jury Selection · Last amended 2020 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceThis section directs the jury commissioner, absent a contrary order, to draw enough potential jurors from the master key list to reach eighty qualified people for grand jury service, and requires delivering a juror qualification form under either the one-step or two-step summoning system.
Full Text of § 25-1668
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(1) Unless the judge or judges order that no grand jury be drawn, after creating the master key list under section 25-1654, the jury commissioner shall draw potential jurors from the master key list for service on grand juries for the jury term in the manner and number provided in this section or as the judge or judges otherwise direct. In drawing names, the jury commissioner may use a manual jury selection process or a jury management system.
(2) If the judge or judges initially order that no grand jury be drawn, such judge or judges may at any time thereafter order the drawing of a grand jury.
(3) The jury commissioner shall draw such number of potential jurors for grand jury service:
(a) As the jury commissioner deems necessary to arrive at a list of eighty persons who possess the qualifications of jurors set forth in section 25-1650; or
(b) As the judge or judges may otherwise direct.
(4)(a) If the jury commissioner uses the two-step qualifying and summoning system, he or she shall deliver to each potential juror a juror qualification form pursuant to section 25-1657.
(b) If the jury commissioner uses the one-step qualifying and summoning system, he or she shall deliver to each potential juror a juror qualification form pursuant to section 25-1657 and shall serve the potential juror with a summons pursuant to section 25-1660.
Source
Laws 2020, LB387, § 25.
Plain-English Summary
Grand juries do not convene automatically every term. Section 25-1668 starts with that choice: unless the judge or judges order that no grand jury be drawn, the jury commissioner draws potential grand jurors from the master key list built under section 25-1654. Even an initial decision to skip a grand jury is not final — the judge or judges can reverse course and order a drawing at any later point.
When jurors are drawn, the target is a workable pool: the jury commissioner keeps drawing potential jurors until reaching eighty people who meet the qualifications in section 25-1650, or whatever number the judge or judges direct instead. The commissioner may use a manual process or a jury management system to make the selections.
What happens next depends on which summoning system a jurisdiction uses. Under the two-step system, each potential juror receives only a qualification form at that stage. Under the one-step system, the commissioner delivers both the qualification form and a summons together, moving directly from qualifying to summoning without a second mailing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every jury term include a grand jury?
No. Judges can order that no grand jury be drawn for a term, though they may reverse that decision later.
How many potential grand jurors does the jury commissioner draw?
Enough to reach eighty qualified people, or another number the judge or judges direct instead.
What is a juror qualification form?
A form delivered to potential jurors as part of the drawing process, used to confirm they meet the statutory qualifications.
What is the difference between the one-step and two-step system?
The two-step system sends a qualification form first and a summons later; the one-step system delivers both together.
Can a judge change course about holding a grand jury?
Yes. The judge or judges may order a grand jury drawn at any time after initially declining to do so.
Source & verification. Section text and the amendment-history citation are
reproduced verbatim from the Nebraska Legislature, Revisor of Statutes, enacted by the
Nebraska Legislature. Last verified July 22, 2026. ·
Official source
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