A jury is a group of randomly selected adults from the community to participate in the criminal justice process as jurors. The first step is to elect members to serve as jurors for a specified time. In the selection of the jurors, the jury commissioners use a list of designated people either by voter register or any other accepted criteria and ensures that the selected people reflect the diversity inherent in the community. All people over eighteen years have an equal chance to join the Jury services (“The answer book for jury service,” n.d.). For a felony, the jury has twelve members selected from twenty prospective members while for a misdemeanor, it has only seven members selected from thirteen possible members.
The role of the jury is to determine the facts by evaluating all evidence the judge ruled admissible. Questions of facts and law take center stage in the trial. In this respect, a judge has first to establish the admissibility of the case by ensuring it meets all the minimum requirements and upholds the plaintiff's or the offender’s rights. The judge gives further instructions during and at the end of the trial (Urbina, 2009 pg. 15).
Swearing in of the bailiff marks the beginning of the jury trial. The prosecuting attorney (representing the state or nation) gives opening statements followed shortly by the defendant’s attorney. After that, each side calls witnesses beginning with the prosecutor. The plaintiff's attorney directly examines the witness followed by a cross-examination by the lawyer of the accused person, and then a final redirect examination by the prosecutor. After that, the defendant’s attorney call witnesses and directly examines them before been cross-examined by the prosecutor. The lawyer of the accused closes the section by a redirect examination of the witnesses of the defendant.
Based on the fact presents, the judge prepares jury instructions upon which the jury member must follow even if they have different opinions on the same. After the jury receives the jury instructions and allows the prosecutor and the defendant’s lawyer to make closing arguments, the jury retires to the jury room for deliberations. The jurors select a presiding juror to oversee the discussions. The jury is under obligation to come up with a unanimous verdict in all criminal cases (Reuters, 2016). In the case that the jury fails to agree on the verdict, the judge must declare the case a mistrial.
The jury system faces various challenges. The jury system is complicated right from the selection of the jurors. In modern times, the jurors just represent racial, ethnic, and gender and foregoes the personal abilities in handling the cases. Besides, the process of picking the jury is not bias-proof as the attorney may end up picking friendly jurors that may frustrate the case. As mentioned earlier, in criminal trials the jury must reach a unanimous verdict, and therefore, a single opposition leads to a mistrial. Therefore, the system is weak because a criminal can escape due to a single dissenting vote.
Many believe that only jurors with the least knowledge or interest in the case give a fair verdict. However, it is hard to find such jurors especially in high-profile cases that receive extensive publicity in the news and social media (Ryan, 1999). The pre-empted information complicates the case. Some Jury members may also leak information on social media anonymously or inadvertently that may influence the verdict. Jury privacy has also been of concern because they may endanger their lives, especially when handling crimes involving gangs.
References
Reuters, T. (2016). Must All Jury Verdicts Be Unanimous? Retrieved on May 28, 2016 from http://litigation.findlaw.com/legal-system/must-all-jury-verdicts-be-unanimous.html
Ryan, J. P., (1999). The American Trial Jury: Current Issues and Controversies. Retrieved on May 28, 2016 from http://www.socialstudies.org/system/files/publications/se/6307/630711.html
The answer book for jury service. (n.d.). Pdf file. Retrieved on May 28, 2016 from http://www.courts.state.va.us/courts/circuit/jury.pdf
Urbina, M. R., (2009). Anatomy of a jury trial. EJournal volume 14 / number 7
Retrieved on May 28, 2016 from http://photos.state.gov/libraries/amgov/30145/publications-english/EJ-jury-0709.pdf
