Unit 7 Seminar Mary K Cronin

Housekeeping…. DB: I’m still seeing last minute posts…. Required: one main post, at least 2 responsive posts Posting at least 2 different days of the unit Spellcheck!!!!!! Check the gradebook for missing assignments There’s still time to get caught up

Light Week This Week To do: One Discussion Board Question Quiz Seminar

Tonight’s Topic In this week’s seminar we will focus on the voir dire process, or jury selection. We will examine the manner in which individuals are selected to be jury members in both the grand jury and trial jury panels. “ Gentlemen, a court is no better than each man of you sitting before me on this jury. A court is only as sound as its jury, and a jury is only as sound as the men who make it up.” Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, 1960

Where do these people come from? (Jury of one’s peers?) Sixth Amendment provides only for an impartial jury chosen from the judicial district in which the crime was committed. “of his peers” from Magna Charta Glasser v. United States—cross section of the community standard “The American tradition of trial by jury, considered in connection with either criminal or civil proceedings, ecessarily contemplates an impartial jury drawn from a cross section of the community.”

Juror qualifications? U.S. citizen Resident of judicial district for required period of time Most states require a person to be of “ordinary intelligence” Understand English Many states provide that the juror not have been convicted of a felony or certain misdemeanors Courts deal with this differently Must be a self report either in open court during voir dire or on juror questionaire

Death qualified juries Composed of jurors who have indicated that they are not opposed to the death penalty. Merely indicating reservations against the death penalty is not sufficient grounds to disqualify a juror member in a capital case. Wainright v. Witt: Revised Witherspoon, holding “That standard is whether the juror’s views would prevent or substantially impair the performance of his duties as a juror in accordance with his instructions and his oath.... We [the Supreme Court] note that, in addition to dispensing with Witherspoon’s reference to ‘automatic’ decision making, this standard likewise does not require that a juror’s bias be proved with ‘unmistakable clarity.’ ” (Roberson, p. 309)

Peremptory Challenges Each side has a limited number of peremptory challenges that may be used to remove jurors that one feels would not be favorable to his or her side. May not be used to exclude a class of persons because of their membership in a class, e.g., all women or all members of a minority group.

What happens when a lawyer excludes members of recognized group: Batson v. Kentucky Was limiting: Did not eliminate all use of peremptory challenges to exclude from the jury persons of a defined group. At the request of the other party, the trial judge must hold a hearing when one party uses the peremptory challenges to exclude persons of a defined group. The party must provide satisfactory AND non-prejudicial reasons for excluding individuals in that class.

When/why is a jury “sequestered?” To protect jury members from possible “outside influences” in arriving at their verdict. Media? What about logistics? Hour of the day? Regulated by statute in most states. If not regulated by statute, then left to the discretion of trial judge.

How can the prosecutor or defense challenge a juror? Cause vs. Peremptory Challenges Challenge for cause: Some cause why the person should not serve on the jury Common challenges for cause: Juror has preconceived ideas regarding the guilt or innocence of defendant Implied or actual bias Juror will not follow the judge’s instructions Statutory challenges