Jury trial
A jury trial or trial by jury is a legal proceeding in which a jury either makes a decision or makes findings of fact. This is called a verdict. The judge usually follows the jury's verdict in his ruling. It is distinguished from a bench trial, in which a judge or panel of judges make all decisions.
History[change | change source]
William the Conqueror brought to the Brits a system of having witnesses who had any knowledge of a crime, tell the court what they knew.[1] They did this after first swearing an oath. The word juror in English comes from the French jurer (to swear).[1] In the 12th century juries were used by the king to discover and present facts.[1] Usually this was in answer to questions posed by the king or his ministers who made the final decision in the case.[1] Eventually this led to a system where the jury made a verdict based on evidence.[2] In the late colonial period, juries became a tool used to express American discontent with British rule. A series of Navigation Acts prohibited the American colonies from trading directly with the Netherlands, Spain, France, and their colonies.[2] As more and more trade restriction were imposed, the American colonists turned to smuggling.[2] When smugglers were caught, they were brought before juries made up of other colonists. These sympathetic juries often acquitted their fellow colonists.[2] The king, angered at these lawbreakers going free, created new courts that did not allow juries.[2] This was a breach of common law practice and infringed on their rights as British citizens. After the Revolutionary war, the Seventh Amendment's right to a jury trial was written to limit the powers of the executive and the Judicial branches of the new federal government.[2]
Criminal trials[change | change source]
Jury trials are changing worldwide. In 2008 Russia abolished jury trials in cases of treason and terrorism.[3] Britain, where juries got their start, is using them less in cases of serious fraud and may ban them from some inquests.[3] In many asian countries, their legal systems are moving towards using the jury trial more.[3] In the United States jury trials are on the decline.[4] In federal courts
Civil trials[change | change source]
The right to a jury trial in civil cases is found in the United States but in very few other places. England, Canada, Australia and New Zealand have all but done away with civil jury trials in favor of bench trials.[5] Fewer than 1 percent of civil trials in the US are jury trials.[6] The Seventh Amendment prevents judges from overturning a jury verdict in federal cases where the finding of fact is reasonably supported by the evidence.[7] In addition, the Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to a speedy trial by an impartial jury in criminal trials.[8]
References[change | change source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Origins and History of the Jury" (PDF). State of Vermont Judiciary. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 "7th Amendment to the Constitution". totallyhistory.com. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "The jury is out". The Economist Newspaper Limited. 12 February 2009. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ↑ Patricia Lee Refo, 'The Vanishing Trial', Litigation; American Bar Association, Vol. 30, No. 2 (Winter 2004), p. 2
- ↑ Renee Lettow Lerner (29 May 2015). "The uncivil jury, part 5: What to do now — repeal and redesign". The Washington Post. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
- ↑ "The Seventh Amendment". National Constitution Center. Archived from the original on 21 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
- ↑ "Seventh Amendment". The Free Dictionary/Farlex. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
- ↑ "Right to a Speedy Jury Trial". FindLaw. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
Other websites[change | change source]
