Juries advantages and disadvantages Flashcards
what is the first advantage of juries and what is the case used
the juries have jury equity so can decide on moral right and wrong
R v Owen
what happened in R v Owen
d was certainly guilt but jury sympathised as they felt he received enough punishment and so verdict was non guilty despite evidence
what is the counter to jury equity
people making a perverse decision defeats the point of the legal system if people choose to ignore it when they want to
what is the second advantage of juries and what case is used
jury system is held in secrecy
Bushels case
contempt of court room act 1981
what did the contempt of court act 1981 say
makes it an offence to share discussions that happen in a jury room
what did bushels case say
juries do not need to reveal reason for their decisions
what is the counter to the jury system being held in secrecy
means we do not know how decisions are made like in R V YOUNG where decision was made with a Quija board
what is the third advantage of juries and what case is used
public have a great deal of confidence in juries
AG v Dallas
why do public have confidence in juries
juries are ordinary members of the public so will represent public views which makes system more democratic
Law society shows 80% of people trust a jury more than a magistrate or judge
what happened in AG v Dalles and why is it a counter
confidence put in juries can be lowered as its easy for jurors to look up case information online like in AG v Dallas where a juror shares info that wasnt shared in court to influence the decision
what is the final benefit of juries and what is the case
they are impartial
R V Wilson and spranson
why is being impartial good
jury members cannot know anyone in the case to reduce bias against those involved
what happened in R v Wilson and spranson
the wife of the prison officer overseeing the defendant was not allowed to sit on the jury due to a fear of bias. good as it creates a decision based on evidence in the court.
what is the counter to the jury being impartial
no way to tell if people have bias on things such as race or profession which could impact a defendants right to fair trial
what is the first disadvantage of juries and what is the case
they can make perverse decisions that are against the law
R v Owen
why is making perverse decisions bad
can ignore law using jury equity to make decision or might just not have legal knowledge
why was what happened in R v Owen bad
defendant was guilty and was let free because jury felt bad which defeated the point of law
what is the counter to perverse decisions being bad
allows flexibility when D is technically is guilty but morally blameless therefore someone like that doesn’t get punishment
what is the second disadvantage of juries and what is the case
decisions done in secrecy
R v Young
what happened in R v Young to make secrecy bad
quija board used to decide decision instead on the evidence provided so secrecy is bad as we cant tell if jury use evidence or base decision on random information
what is the counter to secrecy being bad
makes jurors make honest decisions without fear of being pressured by judges or public
what is the third disadvantage of juries and what cases are used
modern technology can make jury bias
AG V Dallas which lead to Criminal Justice and Courts act 2015
why would modern tech make a juror bias
information on cases are widely available on the internet which can influence jurors when they are only supposed to use evidence
what is a counter to modern tech being bad
despite tech making bias the public still trust juries more than a magistrate of a judge
what is the 4th disadvantage of jurors and what is the case
jurors may have bias towards race and profession
Sander v UK
what happened in Sander v UK
member of jury was openly racist and made racist jokes to defendant so D was not having fair trial
unfair as people as justice is not achieved and its hard to know if people have these biases
