Category Archives: Inside The Jury Room

 

June 28th, 2007

New York Juries "Too White" According to Study

Citizen Action of New York, a government watchdog group, asserts that Blacks, Asians and Hispanics are severely underrepresented in Manhattan jury pools, according to a study they conducted.

As per their press release, while Whites make up 1/2 of the Manhattan population, they make up 3/4 of the jury pool.

“Our survey showed that jury pools have a much higher percentage of whites than their share of the population, while blacks, Hispanics, Asians, and mixed race people are enormously underrepresented,” Bob Cohen, Citizen Action policy director and the report’s lead author, said in a statement. “This means that defendants in criminal cases and plaintiffs in civil proceedings … can’t be sure they’re going to get a fair result from the courts.”

An executive summary and the full report are also available from the group.

More at:

(Eric Turkewitz is a personal injury attorney in New York)

 

March 12th, 2007

The Perils of Jury Duty

From Atlantic County New Jersey–

JUDGE: Is there any reason you would like to be excused from service?
JUROR: Yes, I would like to speak to you at sidebar.
JUDGE: Sure
JUROR: I fear for my life
JUDGE: You should not fear the defendant
JUROR: No, not the defendant…I fear Juror Number 2. I am currently dating her soon-to-be ex-husband and she does not know he is dating so soon.

Courtesy of a recent Jur-E Bulletin newsletter put out by the National Center For State Courts.

 

March 7th, 2007

About The Scooter Libby Juror That Refused To Wear The Valentine’s Day Shirt

Juries can be fascinating. I had noted earlier about the one juror who refused to wear the red Valentine’s Day shirts. And I also noted that her excusal by the court was likely bad for Libby, as stubborn jurors are more apt to hold out longer for their beliefs, destroying unanimity.

Now we know why she was excused, and based on this snippet from a blog posting by another juror, those traits of individualism seemed evident:

As I said, the original 16 jurors – 12 regulars, four alternates, got along famously with one exception. Let’s call the exception RJ (Runaway Juror). She broke the first rule by flashing another juror a page in her notebook during court testimony. Fortunately the message, Look at that eye candy in the third row! wasn’t top secret stuff. She also bothered Court clerk Mattie about the lunch menu, and inserted herself into others’ conversations. All that was easily tolerated. But one day before we were called to court, she approached three jurors and semi-whispered, “My mother told me that reporters are writing stories about how we….” Before she could say more, all three told her to “STOP.”

So this Monday morning, Court clerk Mattie (who hadn’t repeated a single item of clothing in the first three weeks of the trial, according to our fashion consultants) calls RJ into the hall. A few minutes later, she’s collecting her belongings. “It was just something I heard,” she says. We call goodbyes from a distance. As soon as the door closes, four jurors pump their fists.

 

February 27th, 2007

Quotes on the Law (Jury Nullification Department)

As the Scooter Libby jury deliberates, now with the loss of one very independent minded juror who refused to wear a Valentine’s Day shirt, my thoughts turn to jury nullification and the comments of one New York jurist (and a new blog on the subject):

Many years ago, I tried a difficult medical malpractice case before Justice Stanley Sklar in New York. When Justice Sklar discharged the jury (we settled during deliberations) he told a story that I remember today:

In the 1600s William Penn was arrested for an “illegal” speech. The jury acquitted Penn, which enraged the colonial judge. So the judge imprisoned the jury for a few days to help “persuade” them to reach a verdict more to his liking. The jury refused and their imprisonment was subsequently overturned. Thus, the power of the jury was established, free of the opinions of the judge. (See: Bushel’s Case)

Juries are supposed to be finders of fact, and apply those facts to the law as given by the judge. But sometimes juries don’t like the law and do what they want. While in civil cases a jury verdict can sometimes be reversed, in criminal cases a defense verdict ends the case for all time. A few quotes to ponder:

The jury has the power to bring a verdict in the teeth of both law and fact. — Oliver Wendell Holmes, United States Supreme Court Justice

The jury has a right to judge both the law as well as the facts in controversy. — John Jay, 1st Chief Justice of the Supreme Court

The pages of history shine on instances of the jury’s exercise of its prerogative to disregard instructions of the judge — U.S. vs. Dougherty, 1972

It would be an absurdity for jurors to be required to accept the judge’s view of the law, against their own opinion, judgment, and conscience. — John Adams

For more on jury nullification, I found a brand new blog on juries from trial lawyer and jury consultant Anne Reed and her blog entry: The Rare Ruby-Throated Jury Nullification

Links to this post:

jury duty stamps — get ’em while they’re hot!!
cross-posted from new york personal injury law blog: credit new york chief judge judith kaye for the idea. last week the united states postal service unveiled, at the new york county courthouse where i picked my first jury and tried my …
posted by Eric Turkewitz @ September 19, 2007 11:04 AM