The Verdict In your efforts to reach a verdict , keep in mind that you should consider only the evidence that was presented in the courtroom. You should not guess or speculate about things not discussed in court, but you can draw reasonable conclusions from the evidence presented.
It is important to take the case you are deciding seriously. After all, if you were a party in the case, it would be important to you, and you would want the jury to give it serious consideration even if the controversy appears less significant to others.
All jurors should deliberate and vote on each issue to be decided in the case. When it is time to count votes, it is the presiding juror's duty to see that this is done properly. In a civil case , the judge will tell you how many jurors must agree in order to reach a verdict.
In a criminal case, the unanimous agreement of all 12 jurors is required. If the required number of jurors agree on each issue to be decided, the presiding juror will sign and date the verdict, advise the bailiff or court attendant, and return with the signed verdict and any unsigned verdict forms from prior votes to the courtroom.
If a jury cannot arrive at a verdict within a reasonable time and indicates to the judge that there is no possibility that they can reach a verdict, the judge, in their discretion, may dismiss the jury. This situation is a mistrial, sometimes referred to as a "hung jury," and may mean the case goes to trial again with a new jury. View the Court and Community Jury Brochure to get information and instructions for responding to your juror summons,. Skip to main content Skip to topics menu Skip to topics menu.
Cancel Print. Advanced Search. About the Trial Process. Use the following tabs to review each step of a jury trial and become more familiar with the process as a whole.
To find out what to expect during your jury service, please read our Jury Handbook and watch the "Ideals Made Real" video. Please note that detailed information about the statutes that govern much of the process for selecting and administering jury trials in the state of California may be found in Section of the California Code of Civil Procedure.
Step 1: Selection of a Jury Step 2: The Trial Step 3: Jury Deliberations When a jury trial is about to begin, the trial court judge requests a panel of prospective jurors to be sent to the courtroom from the jury assembly room so that the jury selection process can begin.
After reporting to a courtroom, the prospective jurors are first required to swear that they will truthfully answer all questions asked about their qualifications to serve as jurors in the case. The perjury admonishment , which basically requires potential jurors to tell the truth when answering the questions, is read as follows: "Do you, and each of you, understand and agree that you will accurately and truthfully answer, under penalty of perjury, all questions propounded to you concerning your qualifications and competency to serve as a trial juror in the matter pending before this court, and that failure to do so may subject you to criminal prosecution?
When the selection of the jury is completed, the jurors take the following oath: "Do you, and each of you, understand and agree that you will well and truly try the cause now pending before this court, and a true verdict render according only to the evidence presented to you and to the instructions of the court? Jurors' duties during the trial Do not talk to others about the case.
This responsibility requires that you not talk at all with the lawyers, witnesses, or anyone else connected with the case. The lawyers understand this rule. You will find that, even at the risk of seeming rude or unfriendly, the lawyers must avoid even casual conversation with you.
In order to prevent even the appearance of improper conversation, a wise policy for you to follow is to avoid any contact with the lawyers or the parties. You also cannot talk to anybody about the case.
There are important reasons for this: all cases must be decided only on the evidence presented in the courtroom. If you were to discuss the facts of the case or your impressions of it with your family, friends, or with any other person, you might hear their ideas and might be influenced by people who do not know all the facts.
If you believe that someone has tried to speak to you about the case, you must report what happened to the judge by contacting the bailiff immediately. Do not make up your mind before hearing all the evidence. It is also your duty not to form or express an opinion about the case to anyone. This means that you keep an open mind until you have heard the evidence from all sides and the case is given to the jury for deliberation.
Only then may you discuss it with your fellow jurors and even then only when all jurors are present. The burden of proof is on the prosecution to prove each and every charge beyond a reasonable doubt, each and every time. There is no partial credit for the prosecution! Usually, a deadlocked jury is not sent back to deliberate further more than once or twice. If jurors cannot reach a consensus, at some point the judge will declare a mistrial.
A mistrial is okay, and it is FAR better for the defendant than to be convicted. A single juror in most cases has the power to save a life with just two words: Not Guilty. Return to FAQ. What We Do. At the conclusion of the trial, the jurors are given an issue paper, which states the issues that the jury must consider in reaching its verdict. When a jury consists of more than 12 members, only 12 are selected to consider the verdict.
A Court Garda or other official is required to keep the jury together until the verdict is reached. The jury is taken into the jury room and allowed no outside communication at all, with the exception of notes to the Court Registrar.
They may keep a copy of the indictment, the exhibits and their notes. Jurors may send out notes asking for the law to be further explained or for the judge to remind them of the details of the evidence. In reaching its verdict in a criminal trial , the jury must be satisfied that the person is guilty beyond reasonable doubt. Beyond reasonable doubt means that if there are two reasons given in the case and both are possible explanations for what happened, taken together with the evidence presented, the jury should give the person the benefit of the doubt and decide on a verdict of not guilty.
If the case is a civil one, the jury must be satisfied with its verdict on the balance of probabilities. It is not necessary that a jury be unanimous in its verdict. In a criminal case, a verdict need not be unanimous where there are not fewer than 11 jurors if 10 of them agree on a verdict after considering the case for a reasonable time not less than two hours.
In a civil trial, a verdict may be reached by a majority of 9 of the 12 members. When the jury has reached its decision, it will return to the court and the verdict will be read out by the foreman or forewoman. The jury has no role in sentencing. This decision is left up to the judge following submissions made by both sides. Under current public health restrictions , court business has been reduced.
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