Jury Selection

"Given the importance of trial consultants to the modern-day practice of law, Scientific Jury Selection is designed to be informative for psychologists, other professionals interested in trial consulting (e.g., sociologists, communication experts, marketing researchers, psychiatrists, and social workers), and attorneys. The authors provide a thorough review of the most common techniques used to select jurors and a critical, social-science-based evaluation of the ultimate effectiveness of these methods. The nature and mechanics of the voir dire process, the use of community surveys, and the influence of demographic factors on scientific jury selection are among the many topics given a close examination by the two authors, who are pioneers in the field. Psychologists and other social scientists as well as practicing trial consultants who read the book will gain a better understanding of the current state of research relevant to scientific jury selection, emerging trends, and areas in which new research needs to be conducted to advance the field. Attorneys who read the book will be better positioned to decide whether to hire consultants to assist in future litigation, and if so, what types of services these consultants should provide"--Jacket. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2007 APA, all rights reserved).

This is a valuable guide to help understand effective voir dire and jury selection strategies, and then to adapt these strategies to the unique circumstances faced in trial jurisdictions.

This practical guide for practitioners and the judiciary provides readers with guidance on all aspects of jury selection, from the initial decision to select trial by jury to challenges for cause and peremptory challenges.

The jury is often hailed as one of the most important symbols of American democracy. Yet much has changed since the Sixth Amendment in 1791 first guaranteed all citizens the right to a jury trial in criminal prosecutions. Experts now have a much more nuanced understanding of the psychological implications of being a juror, and advances in technology and neuroscience make the work of rendering a decision in a criminal trial more complicated than ever before. Criminal Juries in the 21st Century explores the increasingly wide gulf between criminal trial law, procedures, and policy, and what scientific findings have revealed about the human experience of serving as a juror. Readers will contemplate myriad legal issues that arise when jurors decide criminal cases as well as cutting-edge psychological research that can be used to not only understand the performance and experience of the contemporary criminal jury, but also to improve it. Chapter authors grapple with a number of key issues at the intersection of psychology and law, guiding readers to consider everything from the factors that influence the initial selection of the jury to how jurors cope with and reflect on their service after the trial ends. Together the chapters provide a unique view of criminal juries with the goal of increasing awareness of a broad range of current issues in great need of theoretical, empirical, and legal attention. Criminal Juries in the 21st Century will identify how social science research can inform law and policy relevant to improving justice within the jury system, and is an essential resource for those who directly study jury decision making as well as social scientists generally, attorneys, judges, students, and even future jurors.

"This monograph challenges the present doctrinal and policy positions that are in place in Canada regarding who may serve on a jury and how the petit jury is assembled in the Superior Courts across the land. The presumption that Canadians with criminal antecedents are unsuitable for jury duty is challenged both on the backdrop of history as well as against the present-day reality that one-in-ten of the citizenry is possessed of a criminal record. Additionally, once prospective jurors are summoned to court, the selection methods and "challenge" mechanisms are exposed as functionally ineffective and open to unsettling forms of abuse."--

In August 2016 Colten Boushie, a twenty-two-year-old Cree man from Red Pheasant First Nation, was fatally shot on a Saskatchewan farm by white farmer Gerald Stanley. In a trial that bitterly divided Canadians, Stanley was acquitted of both murder and manslaughter by a jury in Battleford with no visible Indigenous representation. In Canadian Justice, Indigenous Injustice Kent Roach critically reconstructs the Gerald Stanley/Colten Boushie case to examine how it may be a miscarriage of justice. Roach provides historical, legal, political, and sociological background to the case including misunderstandings over crime when Treaty 6 was negotiated, the 1885 hanging of eight Indigenous men at Fort Battleford, the role of the RCMP, prior litigation over Indigenous underrepresentation on juries, and the racially charged debate about defence of property and rural crime. Drawing on both trial transcripts and research on miscarriages of justice, Roach looks at jury selection, the controversial “hang fire” defence, how the credibility and beliefs of Indigenous witnesses were challenged on the stand, and Gerald Stanley's implicit appeals to self-defence and defence of property, as well as the decision not to appeal the acquittal. Concluding his study, Roach asks whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's controversial call to “do better” is possible, given similar cases since Stanley's, the difficulty of reforming the jury or the RCMP, and the combination of Indigenous underrepresentation on juries and overrepresentation among those victimized and accused of crimes. Informed and timely, Canadian Justice, Indigenous Injustice is a searing account of one case that provides valuable insight into criminal justice, racism, and the treatment of Indigenous peoples in Canada.

This guide will help you understand effective voir dire and jury selection strategies and adapt them to the circumstances you face in your trial jurisdiction.