Jury

A Professor of Law at George Mason University wrote an article about the jury nullification in the Washington Post. In it he focuses of various aspects that make this process so interesting and contradicting. The author give his personal view on jury nullification and his initial attitude toward it. Jury nullification can be seen as a two edged sword, because it is not applied on constant and consistent basis. The author, Ilya Somin agrees that it can curb unjust laws, however it…

“I only consider trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to its principles of its constitution.” Thomas Jefferson said this when talking about the jury system. He is saying that the jury process is one of the few ways that people can make sure that the government is following their own rules. People have been questioning the government system lately with everything that has been going on. For instance, Edward Snowden gave up his life to show…

Trial by jury has been prominent among the United States Judicial System since the medieval times. Originating in medieval England, the jury consists of twelve locals in order to decide the fate of the one being tried. Constitutionally, the government cannot revoke someone’s right to life, liberty, and property until the jury is convinced of one’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. The jury is essential in preventing governmental encroachment and ensuring that the rights given by the Constitution…

The general argument made by Paul Mendelle in his work is that juries promote democracy and give a taste of judicial system to ordinary, everyday people. More specifically Mendelle argues that juries are the most fair, effective, and efficient system to convict people of crimes they have or have not committed. He writes “ There is no other part of the constitution that is so open to the public, where ordinary people participate in decisions of suc immediate importance and wield real power.”(line…

individuals’ opinions, the jury system is outdated, unbeneficial and a misinterpretation of justice. Jurors are burdened with the responsibility to decide a person’s future, and oftentimes, they lack the necessary knowledge to do so effectively. The misguidedness of a jury are depicted in Henry Fonda’s and Reginald Rose’s 1957 film, 12 Angry Men. This film focuses on the jury’s struggles to agree on what is justice for a murder case. Their deliberations prove that the jury system is an…

me a good understanding of the 6th amendment by providing me with an in depth look into the jury and the deliberation process. The 6th amendment gives everyone the right to being tried by an impartial jury of their peers who are in charge of deciding the verdict. This movie raised a lot of concerns for me because the jury in this movie was not what I would consider to be impartial, nor did I think this jury presumed this boy innocent until proven guilty(burden of proof). What I mean by that is,…

I am juror number three from the murder trial. I am writing to you so you can hear our reason on why we decided not guilty. I think the boy was not guilty. I think the boy was not guilty because there was no official evidence. The witness statements were not accurate. The first reason why I and the others voted not guilty because the witness didn’t give us good evidence. For example we had a witness who stated that he heard the killing take place. “The old man heard the boy scream, I’m…

Creator of CSI, Anthony E. Zuiker claimed that this is the first time in American History that the jury can’t be fooled. The article brings up an example about a murder trial that happened in Boston and how the jury acquitted the defendant due to lack of DNA evidence despite the fact that there was testimonies of two eyewitnesses. According to DNA specialist Dan Krane, on shows like CSI, viewers "never see…

The United States Constitution affords defendants the right to a trial by an impartial jury through the Sixth Amendment (Hall, 2015). The selection of the jury is a precursor stage for all jury trials, in this stage, the counsel for the defense as well as the counsel for the prosecution have the right to request the dismissal of a potential juror commonly referred to as voir dire. In the instance where there is a specific reason, a potential juror is to be dismissed it is called a challenge for…

naturalistic play, Twelve Angry Men. On the surface, the use of rationality and morality is demonstrated to create an honest deliberation of justice. However, despite this depiction of the American jury system, Rose raises an awareness of the questionable integrity and efficacy of the jurors and the jury system. On a deeper aspect, Rose underscores human subjectivity as the main inhibitor to a righteous judgment, whilst showcasing the solutions to combat this intrinsic nature. Through this, Rose…