TWELVE ANGRY MEN

JURY SELECTION POWERPOINT PRESENTATION

Right to a Jury TrialU.S. Constitution

Right to a Jury Trial U.S. Constitution • 6th Amendment – Cases tried in criminal court – Potential penalty is $500 or 6 months imprisonment – Right to speedy trial by impartial jury • 7th Amendment – Civil cases – Potential penalty is $500 or more • 14th Amendment – States must honor the guarantee of a trial by jury in

criminal cases

Use of Juries

• Approximately 3 million people will be called to jury duty each year • 120,000 jury trials a year • 90% of the jury trials in the world are held in the

U.S. • Civil Cases – 75% are settled prior to trial – Other than personal injury cases, juries are seldom

chosen • Criminal Cases – Juries used in 50% of trials in federal district courts – Juries used in 10% of state trial courts

Choosing a JuryIntended Goal for Jury Selection • Jury of peers – Defendant – Victim or plaintiff • Jury representative of society • Jury of impartial listeners • Jury of accurate processors of information • A jury that will vote my way

H.L. MenckenOn Jury Duty A jury is “a group of twelve people who, having lied to the judge about their hearing, health and business engagements, have failed to fool him.”

Choosing a JuryDrawing a Pool of Jurors - Venire Master list of potential jurors – Voter registration – DMV lists – Welfare lists • Jurors randomly called to jury duty – Eligibility (age 18, U.S. citizen, speak English, no felony conviction, resident of Virginia for 12 months, resident of county for six months, no jury service in past 3 years) – Jurors excused due to hardship or recent jury duty • Child care, work, & illness are examples of hardships • Jurors randomly called to a particular trial – 20% ignore the jury summons (Dauner, 1996)

Popularity of Jury Duty

2004 American Bar Association Survey – 75% said jury duty is not a burden to be avoided – 58% considered jury duty a privilege – 75% said they would rather have a jury try them than a judge • The Reality – 60% called to jury duty claimed a hardship (Fukurai et al., 1993) – Only 39.5% of those summoned were initially willing to serve (Aamodt, Raynes, & Drewry, 2004) – 20% of those who received a summons for a particular trial didn’t show up (Dauner, 1996)

Jury PayDepends on State and County States pay a certain amount, counties can usually add to that – Missouri pays $6 per day – St. Louis County, MO adds another $12 for a total of $18 • Many states pay one rate for being called to jury duty and a higher rate if actually chosen to serve on a jury • Virginia: State pays $30 a day • The Low – Illinois ($4), Georgia ($5), Texas & Missouri ($6) • The High – Federal government, Indiana, West Virginia pay $40 a day • No pay for first few days – Employer must pay regular wages – Colorado & Massachusetts, no pay for first 3 days, $50 after that – Connecticut, no pay for first 5 days, $50 after that – California, No pay for the first day, $15 after that

Top Excuses to Get Out of Jury Duty

* I am a professional psychic so I would know who is guiltyeven before the trial

• I am currently in jail but if the judge will let me out, I wouldbe happy to serve

• I'm 67 and my bladder causes me to pee quite often. I WILLNOT serve unless you can guarantee I can pee every 30minutes.

• Would I have to bathe?• I don’t have much of an education and don’t have any clothes

to wear*• I’m not smart enough and need to use the bathroom a lot*• Don’t like getting into other people’s problems*• Don’t believe in judging others*

EXAMPLES

TWO LAWYERS GIVE THEIR ADVICE ON JURY SELECTION

Clarence Darrow

I try to get a jury with little education but with much

human emotion. The Irish are always the best

jurymen for the defense. I don’t want a Scotchman,

for he has too little human feelings; I don’t want a

Scandinavian, for he has too strong a respect for law

as law. In general, I don’t want a religious person,

for he believes in sin and punishment. The defense

should avoid rich men who have a high regard for the

laws they make and use it.

The smug and ultrarespectable think they are the

guardians of society, and they believe the law is for them.

Gerry Spence

Women are more punitive than men by a score of aboutfive to one. There’s a reason for that: Women alwayshad to toe the line. Women are splendid jurors for theprosecution in rape cases, baby cases. As a defenseattorney I prefer men because men had moreexperience hell-raising and were more forgiving of it.Obese people are desirable because they lack self-

control and don’t demand as much law-abiding discipline from others. Yuppies are the worst

because they fear crime, love property, and haven’tsuffered enough to be sympathetic to the accused.

WORKS CITED

ALL INFORMATION CAME FROM

Dr. Mike AamodtRadford Universitymaamodt@radford.edu

http://maamodt.asp.radford.edu/Psyc%20405/Student%20Notes%20-%20Courtroom%20Psychology.pdf