Chapter 13 Flashcards
(23 cards)
What happens when you report to court for jury duty?
You assemble with other potential jurors, wait for cases to be decided through plea bargaining, and could be dismissed without serving on a jury.
How effective are jurors at doing their jobs?
Jurors tend to evaluate evidence effectively, agreeing with judges on the strength of evidence. However, emotions can complicate the process, especially in cases involving graphic evidence.
jurors generally agree with judges on the strength of evidence. They tend to convict when evidence is strong and acquit when it is weak, but emotions may interfere with their objectivity.
How do jurors understand expert testimony?
Jurors may rely on peripheral cues (such as the expert’s appearance or presentation) rather than deep analysis, particularly in technical cases. They may also rely on fellow jurors to follow the details.
Are jurors competent to understand legal instructions?
Jurors often struggle with legal instructions. In one study, 19% of jurors’ comments were incorrect. Psychological techniques like simplifying language can help make instructions clearer.
What is jury nullification?
Jury nullification is when jurors acquit a defendant despite evidence and judicial instructions, usually because they believe the law is unjust or the specific case doesn’t warrant punishment.
Are jurors willing to apply instructions and rules?
Jurors may engage in nullification, especially when they sympathize with the defendant or disagree with the law. Mock trials show that telling jurors they can nullify increases the likelihood of acquitting sympathetic defendants.
Can jurors set aside extralegal information (like race or background)?
According to the “liberation hypothesis,” when evidence is ambiguous, jurors are “liberated” to rely on their assumptions, biases, or extralegal information to make decisions.
Can jurors disregard inadmissible evidence?
Research shows that jurors are often impacted by inadmissible evidence, and while instructions to disregard it can help, jurors may still think about it, resulting in the “thought suppression phenomenon.”
Roberto is a judge who gives jury instructions at the beginning of the trial and rests on the notion that the instructions will have their most beneficial effect when presented first, because jurors will know the rules of the trial and the requirements of the law before the trial commences. This is called which of the following?
Primacy effect
Trying “not to think of a white bear” increases the tendency to do the opposite, because the harder people try to control a thought, the lesser successful they are. This is described in which of the following?
Thought suppression studies
A judge admonishes a lawyer for presenting evidence that is unrelated to the substance of the case. What is this type of evidence called?
Inadmissible evidence
Evidence that is presented in court but is unrelated to the substance of the case is a type of which of the following?
Inadmissible evidence
Which of the following occurs when jurors would take a straw poll very early in their discussion to reveal the general sentiment of the group and to establish the factions that see things in different ways?
Verdict-driven deliberation
Emile is a judge who holds that prosecutors may not suggest that because defendants had the propensity to act in a criminal manner, they are guilty of the crime charged. This is called which of the following?
Propensity evidence
Reavus is a judge who believes juries should be allowed or even encouraged to defy the law if they believe it is unjust. Reavus believes in which of the following?
Jury nullification
Which of the following is an argument against the use of juries in complex civil litigation cases?
All of these are correct.
Jurors should decide liability on the basis of which of the following characteristics of the defendant?
Conduct
Which of the following is the most important determinant of jurors’ verdicts in criminal trials?
Evidentiary strength
Which of the following is the implicit power to acquit defendants despite evidence and judicial instructions?
Jury nullification
Which of the following occurs when jurors review crucial pieces of evidence in order to reach an agreed-upon consensus about how to interpret that evidence and only then try to match their interpretation to various verdict options?
None of these
Paula is a judge who gives instructions to the effect that evidence of a defendant’s prior record can be used for limited purposes only: to gauge the defendant’s credibility but not to prove the defendant’s propensity to commit the charged offense. This is called which of the following?
Limiting instruction
Which of the following is true regarding nullification by the jury?
The jury is not explicitly told that they have this right but they still have the power.
Jurors also consider the severity of an injury or accident when judging a defendant’s liability. This is sometimes referred to as which of the following?
Outcome severity
