On Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:53:02 +0100, andrel wrote:

>> If the judge or lawyers don't follow the laws set down by the
>> legislature, they get fired. If the jury doesn't follow the laws, the
>> accused goes free and the jury isn't in any trouble. That's the primary
>> reason for having a jury. They, in theory, get to overthrow bad laws by
>> simply refusing to convict anyone.
> 
> Is that anything more than a theory?

It depends on the jury.  If it's a bunch of people who "couldn't get out 
of jury duty", then it probably won't happen.

But if there's one person on the jury who makes a point of something 
that's not right, then it can happen.

The drug case I sat in on (which I mentioned earlier), there was 
documentation stating that possession of drug paraphernalia required a 
demonstration of intent to use it.  That wasn't something that was 
addressed at all by the prosecution in the case.

In our initial vote, everyone but me voted that he was guilty of the 
charges.  I didn't vote that way because of that one stipulation.  That 
sparked discussion, and ultimately I agreed that the case history was 
more of an exception than a precedent, so I also voted him guilty.

But that point is what prompted my discussion with the judge after the 
case was over, too.

The thing that stuck with me the most was how much respect the court 
showed the jury - including both the prosecution and defense attorneys.

Jim

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