jury decision making: pre trial publicity Flashcards
what is a jury?
- group of 12 people
- randomly selected from the electual register
- aged 18-75
- consider evidence presented during a trial and decide if the defendant is guilty or not guilty
why would a juror be disqualified?
- on probation
- imprisoned
- sentenced to community service
- on bail
describe the process of the jury during a trial
- defence and prosecution present argument to jury
- jurors oath: swear on a holy book or affirm
- tell usher if they have connections to anyone present
- closing speeches
- judge summarises
- discussion
- clerk asks foreperson to deliver verdict
what is a mock jury?
- group of ppts made to consider a case and make judgements about it
- staged trial
- researchers may observe through 1 way mirror
what are some strengths of using a mock jury?
- standardised procedures
- 1 way mirror reduces DCs
- application to improve real life juries
- random selection
- controlled environment
what are some weaknesses of using a mock jury?
- lacks mundane realism
- shortened, in real life it could take weeks and are more complex
- mock jurors may not act the same as a real jury
what is a shadow jury?
- group of people hired by a trial consultant to watch trials and report impressions of evidence
- asked to make a verdict
- but no influence over real trial
what are some strengths of using a shadow jury?
- real case and evidence so high ecological validity
- not same physiological stress so good ethics
what are some weaknesses of using a shadow jury?
- no influence on final verdict so not same pressure, reduces validity
- lacks control over EVs so hard to establish cause and effect
- hard to obtain representative jury so low generalisability
what is pre trial publicity?
- media/other coverage of a case before the trial takes place
- assumed that jury members will have read or heard about a high publicity case
- may cause them to be prejudiced
what information may PTP include?
- facts about crime
- details of defendant’s past offences
- emotional opinions
when may PTP cause jurors to be more conviction prone?
when the publicity is designed to elicit an emotional response
what is a gagging order?
the refrain of disclosing certain information to the public/press
how might PTP affect a juror’s decision making in relation to memory?
- gives misinformation that can be incorporated into the trial’s evidence
- juror mixes up information read in media with information in trial due to reconstructive memory
- negative impact on verdict if portrayed negatively
what is rationalisation in terms of PTP?
jury forgets information that does not conform to a positive or negative schema
what is confabulation in terms of PTP?
jury changes details in order to fit the schema they already have existing from what they have read in the media
what is voir dire?
potential jurors are questioned about biases they may hold, by a judge/lawyer to determine suitability
what is a weakness of voir dire?
- validity
- attorneys ability to uncover general juror bias is limited
- difficult to identify biased jurors because of self report
- jurors may not recognise factors influencing decision making such as PTP
what is a weakness of voir dire?
- generalisability
- used in american justice system
- cannot represent other cultures
what is judicial instruction?
- instructions to jury about duty to avoid being influenced by PTP
- emphasise importance of disregarding previously heard info about the case and relying solely on information presented in trial
what is substantive instruction?
- laws applying to the specific case at hand
- eg defining first/second degree murder
what is a procedural instruction?
- general juror duties relevant across cases
- eg legal thresholds like reasonable doubt
when is judicial instruction more effective?
when paired with rationale for why info should be disregarded
what is continuance?
delaying the start of a trial
how does continuance act as a remedy for PTP?
- hope that effects of PTP will decrease as time passes
- decreases factual PTP but not emotional
what is a weakness of using continuance?
- meta analysis showed that longer delays between PTP and a trial can actually increase PTP effects
- due to sleeper effect where information becomes detached from unreliable memory source making it impossible for jurors to identify whether info came from PTP or trial
what is a strength of PTP affecting JDM?
- supporting evidence 1
Thomas
- juries in Nottingham, Worcester, London
- 44% of jurors recalled emphasis of media reports and tended to remember publicity suggesting guilt
- in high profile cases, 20% of jurors who recalled media reports found it hard to put this out of their minds while serving as a juror
what is a strength of PTP affecting JDM?
- supporting evidence 2
Steblay et al
- meta analysis
- review effects of PTP on 44 different studies
- jurors exposed to neg PTP more likely to give a guilty verdict
what is a strength of PTP affecting JDM?
- supporting evidence 3
Honess et al
- factual and emotional recall of PTP
- 50 mock jurors shown simulation of trial material
- reasoning and verdicts recorded
- highly emotional material more likely to be remembered and affecting reasoning/confidence
what is a weakness of PTP affecting JDM?
- methodology criticism
- DV not measured in valid way
- eg asking ppt to give a sentence is not a normal juror task
- lacks ecological validity
what is a weakness of PTP affecting JDM?
- generalisability
- student samples
- cannot represent wider population
what is a strength of PTP affecting JDM?
- validity
- meta analysis
- large samples
- for stats analysis
what is a strength of PTP affecting JDM?
- methodology compliment
- high control over EVs
- cause and effect can be established
