The Value Of A Jury System Essay -- essays research papers

The Value of a Jury musical arrangementThe Founders of our nation understood that no idea was more central to our dick of Rights -- indeed, to judicature of the people, by the people, and for the people -- than the citizen dialog box. It was cherished not only as a bulwark against tyranny but also as an demand means of educating Americans in the habits and duties of citizenship. By enacting the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Amendments to the Constitution, the Framers sought to install the ripe(p) to trial by jury as a cornerstone of a free society. The Framers of the Constitution felt that juries -- because they were composed of ordinary citizens and because they owed no financial allegiance to the government -- were indispensable to thwarting the excesses of powerful and overzealous government officials. The jury trial was the only right explicitly included in each of the state writings devised between 1776 and 1789 . And the criminal jury was one of hardly a(prenominal) right s explicitly mentioned in the original federal constitution proposed by the Philadelphia Convention. Anti-federalists complained that the proposed constitution did not go far enough in protect juries, and federalists at last responded by enacting three constitutional amendments guaranteeing grand, petit, and civil juries. The need for juries was especially great in criminal cases A grand jury could block all prosecution it deemed unfounded or malicious, and a petit jury could likewise interject itself on behalf of a defendant charged unfairly. The famous Zenger case in the 1730s dramatized the libertarian advantages of juries . When New Yorks royal government sought to stifle its newspaper critics through criminal prosecution, New York grand juries refused to indict, and a petit jury famously refused to confidence game .     But the Founders vision of the jury went far beyond merely protecting defendants. The jurys democratic role was intertwined with other i deas enshrined in the Bill of Rights, including free reference and citizen militias. The jury was an essential democratic institution because it was a means by which citizens could engage in self-government. Nowhere else -- not even in the take booth -- must(prenominal) Americans come together in person to consult over fundamental matters of justice . Jurors face a solemn responsibleness to overlook personal differences and prejudices to fairl... ... jury service. If the jury system is to remain a central institution of democracy and citizenship, it must be refined. Jury trials must attract engaged and thoughtful citizens the rules of the courts must treat jurors as sovereign, free citizens rather than as children. To this end, we suggest a number of reforms. In umteen instances, these changes would require no new laws, but merely a willingness on the part of the courts to unleash the common sense of the ordinary citizen.ReferencesAlschuler, Albert, "Our faltering jury., " mankind Interest,      Jan 1996, pp. 28.Culp, Douglass, "Do criminal juries let too many defendants loose?," Vol. 12, Birmingham dividing line Journal, 18 Dec 1995, pp. 15.Curriden, Mark, "Jury reform.," Vol. 81, ABA Journal,     Nov 1995, pp. 72.McElhaney, James, "Jury instructions.," Vol. 81, ABA Journal, Nov 1995, pp. 91.Savage, David., "A jury of your peers.," Vol. 81, ABA Journal, Oct 1995, pp. 40.Zobel, Hiller, "The jury on trial.," Current, Nov 1995, pp. 8.