1. What level of proof is required in a criminal trial? How does that differ in a civil trial?
a. The level of proof required in a criminal trial is: “proof beyond a reasonable doubt (Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments’ Due Process Clauses).” (Garland 17) Meaning that if the judge has no doubt on the defendant's guilt based on the evidence provided he will be sentenced as guilty. On the other hand, in a civil trial, all that is needed is proof by a “preponderance of the evidence,” which means that one side of the case has more proof than the other resulting in a small margin of difference between the case verdict.
2. How many jurors must there be in a California criminal case? How many must agree to sustain a conviction?
a. In the state of California
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List six qualifications for a juror. (Garland 32)
i. Is a citizen of the United States; ii. Is a resident of the state; iii. Is at least 18 years of age; iv. Is of sound mind;
v. Is in possession of the person’s natural faculties; and vi. Is able to read or speak the English language.
4. What is voir dire and jury nullification?
a. Voir dire- A process in which jurors are questioned in order to select the members of the final panel. Another definition given by Garland is “roughly it means “to speak the truth.”
(Garland 32)
b. Jury Nullification- Is when a jury reaches a verdict that is opposing to that of all the evidence presented.
5. What is the difference between a jury trial and a bench trial? Who determines which it will be?
a. A bench trial takes place in front of a judge and there are no jurors (jury) present. On the other hand, a jury trial is when members of the public act as jurors and provide their feedback to the judge once they hear the evidence provided. The prosecuting attorney needs to agree to a trial without jurors present. Once it is agreed the judge will commence the case without a jury present. A defendant also has the right to waive a jury, however it is only allowed in some
A jury is a person who is un-qualified and not paid who is selected at random to participate in the court hearing. To be
What does the prosecution need to prove in the courtroom for a person to be convicted of a criminal offence? (2 marks)
In fact, according to http://www.ducksters.com/ “A trial by jury is when a number of people hear the case and decide together if the defendant is guilty. The amendment doesn't say exactly how many people need to be on a jury. The Supreme Court, however, has said that there needs to be at least six people on a jury. Most juries today in the United States have twelve members.” This means that the jury is just a bunch of random people that have heard about the case that hear what he has to say and decide if he’s guilty.
Juries exists in the criminal trial to listen to the case presented to them and, as a third, non-bias party, decide beyond reasonable doubt if the accused is guilty. For the use of a trial by juror to be effective, no bias should exists in the jurors judgments, the jurors should understand clearly their role and key legal terms, and the jury system should represent the communities standards and views whilst upholding the rights of the accused and society and remain cost and time effective.
Often, forty or fifty people will be summoned for a 12 person jury. The process of selecting who will make up the jury is called voir dire, which involves getting rid of potential jurors who would not be fair or impartial. Prosecutors and defense attorneys can strike for cause a potential juror for several reasons, such as bias or prejudice, an unlimited number of times. They also have a limited number of peremptory challenges, which allows them to get rid of a juror without needing to have a valid reason to do so. Once all challenges the attorneys can utilize have been exhausted, the judge will assemble the petit jury and will generally select alternate jurors as
Based on the United States Constitution, all citizens have the right to a “Trial by Jury,” which is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision in order to direct the actions of a judge. A jury pool is randomly selected first, and then the potential jurors are notified. After, “Voir Dire,” or jury selection, occurs where twelve people are chosen for jury duty.
The jury may disagree with the law and instructions the judge have given them over the course of the trial. Jury nullification occurs when all of the evidence shows the defendant committed a crime, and the jury finds them not guilty based on some racial inequality. The jury chose to ignore the evidence and the law and return a not guilty
The first phase of a criminal jury trial is focused on selecting specific jurors, which is accomplished through a process referred to as 'voir dire' which is a screening of potential jurors. In the criminal trial involving an offense categorized as a felony "12 jurors and up to six alternate jurors may be chosen." (3rd Judicial District, ) Voir dire of the jury involves the prosecuting and defense attorneys questioning the potential jurors and
Jury: a body of people (typically twelve in number) sworn to inquire into matters of fact and reach to a verdict on the basis of the evidence presented to them in court. In 12 Angry Men, there were twelve jurors and eleven of them were ready to reach a verdict, to decide the life of a boy who was barely an adult, without reviewing or discussing the evidence and facts given to them during the trial. This changed when Juror #8 challenged the opinions of the other eleven and introduced the idea of reasonable doubt. As a result, by the end of the discussion after examining matters of fact, a verdict was made off the basis of the evidence shown in court, and every one of those eleven jurors, who had originally voted guilty, changed their position to a unanimous one of not guilty. Juror
You might have heard this term on television shows or even the news. Sometimes at the conclusion of a jury trial, if the jury cannot unanimously reach a verdict, the court will declare a mistrial. When this happens, the judge will bring the jury in to the court, and typically poll them individually, or ask each juror that a verdict cannot be reached. The judge will also typically ask which way the split is, meaning how many have voted for guilt.
Specifically, in a criminal trial, it is the role of the jury to determine a “guilty” or a “not guilty” verdict which is set in place by the standard “beyond a reasonable doubt” meaning that even with the slightest indication of doubt, the defendant must be found not guilty. This standard places the burden of proof with the prosecution to ensure the judge or
When felony charges do pass the proverbial common sense test with judges then proceedings for a trial will be established by one of two ways. If an offender feels that he or she is not guilty then he or she can request a trial by jury or in some case a bench trial where the defendant is tried by the judge. A trial by jury is usually the last step in a felony charge case and ultimately determines either innocence or guilt by unanimous verdict. The proponent of the jury will consist usually of twelve people who are randomly selected through a blind draw from a secretary of state list of licensed drivers (Nichols, n.d.). After the selection process is complete the potential jurors are administered “voir dire” or questions presented by the
Burden proof in a civil case that is a based on the “preponderance of evidence.” In criminal cases, because an individual accused with a crime (defendant) is alleged to be innocent until proven guilty, the prosecution must prove the case “beyond a reasonable doubt.” This does not mean beyond all possible or hypothetical doubt, but it does mean the court or jury must have an accepting conviction to a moral assurance of the truth of the charge. Since, a person’s freedom is at risk, the standard for prosecutors attesting the case is necessarily a higher burden than the proof required in a civil case.
A jury is a group of 12 people aged between 18 and 70 who have been randomly selected from the electoral roll. Juries are only used for indictable criminal offences, these cases are held in either the District or Supreme court.
Trail by Jury - Trail by jury is when a case goes to court and the jury make the decision. The point of the judge is to control what is happening in the case but he does not have a say on the opinions.