Juries

Question 1

role in criminal courts

Answer 1

around 2% of criminal trials use juries
-sit in the crown court as a panel of 12 persons
- decide the verdict only of the defendant g/ng
-decide the facts of the case
-listen to the judge who will direct a jury on points of law
-are independent and act without fear of pressure from the judge to either convict or decide a verdict quickly

Question 2

Advantages of using juries

Answer 2

-public confidence is instilled due to traditional idea of being judged by ordinary member of society rather than judges
- jury equity uphold democracy and freedom of will
-open system of justice, process is public and assumes no legal knowledge of jurors as points are explained
- privacy or decision making process, juries decide the verdict in private without outside pressures
- random selection process allows a cross-section of community to be picked from
-neutrality, a jury should be impartial and as a panel of 12 any individual prejudices should be cancelled out.

Question 3

disadvantage of using juries

Answer 3

-slow and expensive, having to explain points of law increases the time taken and the cost of the judges and legal personnel
-unpopular, the compulsory nature of jury service means many jurors would rather not serve due to its impact on their working or family life.
- outside influences, media coverage can influence jurors
-no explanation of verdict
failure to understand case, due to complex nature of law possible juries do not follow the issues clearly
-lack of neutrality, a complete cancelling of bias especially racism is speculative at best and highly unlikely