TRIAL

Outline of all steps  Voir dire prospective jurors  Impanel the jury  Plaintiff’s opening statement  Defendant’s opening  Plaintiff’s case in chief  Plaintiff rests  Defendant’s motion

Outline continued  Defendant’s case  Defendant Rest  Plaintiff’s rebuttal  Defendant’s surrebuttal  Renewal of motion for directed verdict  Closing Arguments  Judge’s charge to the jury  Jury deliberations, jury verdict, and polling

JURY DUTY

“Trial of all crimes… shall be by jury.” Article III, Section 2 “In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed.” Amendment V “In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved.” Amendment VII The United States Constitution says:

What or who is…  An impartial  Twelve person body  Made up of defendant’s peers  Which is the trier of fact  A citizen of the United States,  Who is also a resident of the jurisdiction,  Is at least 18 years old,  And able to communicate in English A jury?A jury member?

What is the jury’s job?  Hear/See testimony and evidence in a trial,  Testimony= oral evidence given under oath by a witness in answer to questions posed by attorneys at trial or at a deposition (questioning under oath outside of court).

Jurys Job Continued  deliberate and render a verdict.  Verdict=the decision of a jury after a trial, which must be accepted by the trial judge to be final

Can you be excused?  YES.  Jurors may be excused if: Serving on jury duty poses an unusual hardship. An illness prevents you from doing a good job. A disability which the court cannot accommodate prevents you from serving  BUT…  You must request to be excused. A failure to appear when summoned is a misdemeanor.

How Jurors Are Selected

Jury pool of 200 to 1,000 citizens drawn each month from source list Jury pool of 200 to 1,000 citizens drawn each month from source list Panel30Panel30 Selected for jury 14Selected 14 Jury14Jury14 Challenged or not used 16Challenged 16 VoirDire Jury Selection Process Jurors that are not selected are returned to the pool for possible use on another jury.

Jury pool of 200 to 1,000 citizens drawn each month from source list Jury pool of 200 to 1,000 citizens drawn each month from source list Panel30Panel30 Selected for jury 14Selected 14 Jury14Jury14 Challenged or not used 16Challenged 16 VoirDire Jury Selection Process Return to jury pool Guilty plea or dismissed Trial

“The truth” + “To speak”= “To speak the truth” VOIR DIRE

How jurors are selected  The attorneys ask jurors questions to discover biases of the jurors.  Bias= the predisposition anyone making a judicial decision, against or in favor of one of the parties or a class of persons.  Jurors may be removed:  For Cause- If juror says or otherwise expresses a bias.

Example of a Voir Dire

Background Facts  Nick Sanchez graduated from high school last year with honors and with an athletic scholarship to college. Several weeks before graduation, Mr. Sanchez was arrested when police found a significant quantity of marijuana in a gym bag in the trunk of his car. Earlier that night, Mr. Sanchez had attended a graduation party. While at the party, he claims that an acquaintance gave him the gym bag to hold onto for a few minutes. Mr. Sanchez said the acquaintance never returned so he placed the gym bag in the trunk of his car.

Background Facts  Another person at the party, Jason Sanders, will testify that he saw Mr. Sanchez exchange money for the gym bag. Mr. Sanders, who is on probation for a drug conviction, called police to tell them that Mr. Sanchez had drugs in his car. Police responded and went to Mr. Sanchez’s home to act on the tip. The police found marijuana in a gym bag in the trunk and arrested him. The issue to be tried in this case is whether Mr. Sanchez “knowingly and intentionally” possessed the marijuana that was found in the trunk of his car.

State (PROSECUTION)

State/ Prosecution  We are here to represent the State in the State v. Nick Sanchez. We also represent you and the community we live in as citizens of the State. You have been called to do your duty to follow the laws of the State and decide the guilt of this Defendant. We are going to ask you some questions and if your answer is ‘yes’ then please raise your hand.

Defense

 We represent Nick Sanchez in this case. We will explain what happened once the trial starts, but Mr. Sanchez denies that he knew anything about the drugs that were found in his car. You will have to decide whether he knew or not. We will be asking you some questions and if your answer is ‘yes’ then please raise your hand.