Petit Juries
Once charges have been brought, the case is then brought before a petit jury, (or what is commonly recognized as the normal courtroom jury of six to twelve members), or is tried by a judge alone, if the defense requests it. Any petit jury is selected from a pool by the prosecution and defense.
After both sides have presented their cases and made closing arguments, the judge gives the jury legal instructions; the jury then adjourns to deliberate in private. The jury generally must unanimously agree on a verdict of guilty or not guilty; however, the Supreme Court has upheld non unanimous jury verdicts, so long as the jury is larger than 6 people. In 1972, the Court upheld convictions in Apodaca v. Oregon and Johnson v. Louisiana where Oregon and Louisiana convicted Petitioners on 10-to-2 and 9-to-3 verdicts respectively. In 1979, the Court ruled in Burch v. Louisiana that where a jury was made of 6 people, the verdict must be unanimous.
Read more about this topic: United States Criminal Procedure
Famous quotes containing the word juries:
“Freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of person under the protection of habeas corpus, and trial by juries impartially selected. These principles form the bright constellation which has gone before us, and guided our steps through an age of revolution and reformation.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)