Deck 12: The Jury

Question 1

Jury trials account for less than 1% of all criminal trials

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Under the Juries Act 1974 anyone between the age of 18 and 70 is eligible for jury service provided that they fulfil which of the following criteria?

A) Have good knowledge of the local area
B) They are registered to vote
C) Have at least five A

Answer 2

B
Explanation:Under the Juries Act 1974 anyone between the age of 18 and 70 is eligible for jury service provided that they are registered to vote, have been resident in the UK for more than five years and are not disqualified and are not mentally disordered

Question 3

Which of the following statements about juries is TRUE?

A) Either side may challenge for cause
B) The judge may discharge any juror, or the whole jury to prevent scandal or the perversion of justice
C) Once they retire to consider their verdict, jurors may consult with whomever they wish to help make their decision
D) Majority verdicts are allowed
E) Juries allow the ordinary citizen to partake in the administration of justice

Answer 3

A,B,D,E
Explanation:The statement 'once they retire to consider their verdict, jurors may consult with whomever they wish to help make their decision' is false'. Juries are not allowed to comminicate with anyone other than the judge and an assigned court official.

Question 4

Which of the following are reasons why someone may be excused from jury service?

A) Age
B) Residency
C) Mental disability
D) Language
E) Occuptions within law (i.e. Barristers and solicitors)

Question 5

Which fo the following statements are TRUE?

A) Prosecution have no right to ask jurors to stand by
B) All on the electoral register are liable to serve jury service
C) Service is subject to exemption, excusal and disqualification
D) Jury vetting is checking that jurors are suitable to hear sensitive cases
E) Defence and prosecution can challenge for cause

Question 6

Under the Juries Act 1974 anyone between the age of 18 and 70 is eligible for jury service provided that they fulfil which of the following criteria?

A) Have good knowledge of the local area
B) They are registered to vote
C) Have at least five A

Question 7

Match up the case with the facts oroutcome
-R v Arshid Khan (2008)

A)The judge made clear beyond doubt that the defendant was guilty, under the Official Secrets Act 1911, of the offence with which he was charged: the jury still returned a not guilty verdict
B)Three protestors were charged with committing criminal damage, and another was charged with conspiracy to cause criminal damage, in relation to an attack on Hawk Jet aeroplanes that were about to be sent to Indonesia
C)The House of Lords held that it was contempt of court for a newspaper to publish disclosures by jurors of what took place in the jury room while they were considering their verdict, unless the publication amounted to no more than a re-publication of facts
D)The defendant appealed against convictions on the ground that the judge at his trial had permitted new evidence to be put to the jury after it had retired to consider its verdict

Question 8

Match up the case with the facts oroutcome
-Attorney General v Associated Newspapers (1994)

A)The judge made clear beyond doubt that the defendant was guilty, under the Official Secrets Act 1911, of the offence with which he was charged: the jury still returned a not guilty verdict
B)Three protestors were charged with committing criminal damage, and another was charged with conspiracy to cause criminal damage, in relation to an attack on Hawk Jet aeroplanes that were about to be sent to Indonesia
C)The House of Lords held that it was contempt of court for a newspaper to publish disclosures by jurors of what took place in the jury room while they were considering their verdict, unless the publication amounted to no more than a re-publication of facts
D)The defendant appealed against convictions on the ground that the judge at his trial had permitted new evidence to be put to the jury after it had retired to consider its verdict

Question 9

Match up the case with the facts oroutcome
-R v Kronlid (1996)

A)The judge made clear beyond doubt that the defendant was guilty, under the Official Secrets Act 1911, of the offence with which he was charged: the jury still returned a not guilty verdict
B)Three protestors were charged with committing criminal damage, and another was charged with conspiracy to cause criminal damage, in relation to an attack on Hawk Jet aeroplanes that were about to be sent to Indonesia
C)The House of Lords held that it was contempt of court for a newspaper to publish disclosures by jurors of what took place in the jury room while they were considering their verdict, unless the publication amounted to no more than a re-publication of facts
D)The defendant appealed against convictions on the ground that the judge at his trial had permitted new evidence to be put to the jury after it had retired to consider its verdict

Question 10

Match up the case with the facts oroutcome
-R v Clive Ponting (1985)

A)The judge made clear beyond doubt that the defendant was guilty, under the Official Secrets Act 1911, of the offence with which he was charged: the jury still returned a not guilty verdict
B)Three protestors were charged with committing criminal damage, and another was charged with conspiracy to cause criminal damage, in relation to an attack on Hawk Jet aeroplanes that were about to be sent to Indonesia
C)The House of Lords held that it was contempt of court for a newspaper to publish disclosures by jurors of what took place in the jury room while they were considering their verdict, unless the publication amounted to no more than a re-publication of facts
D)The defendant appealed against convictions on the ground that the judge at his trial had permitted new evidence to be put to the jury after it had retired to consider its verdict

Question 11

In February 1998, the Home Office issued a Green Paper entitled Juries in Serious Fraud Trials. Match the proposals to their meaning
-Special juries

A)Specially trained judges, either singly or in a panel, and possibly with the help of lay experts
B)These would be made up of qualified people and might be drawn from a special pool of potential jurors
C)The judge would hear the evidence and sum up the facts, leaving the jury simply to vote on guilt or innocence
D)11 of the jury would be selected as normal, but number 12 would be qualified in order to be able to assist the others on complex points

Question 12

In February 1998, the Home Office issued a Green Paper entitled Juries in Serious Fraud Trials. Match the proposals to their meaning
-Judge-run trials

A)Specially trained judges, either singly or in a panel, and possibly with the help of lay experts
B)These would be made up of qualified people and might be drawn from a special pool of potential jurors
C)The judge would hear the evidence and sum up the facts, leaving the jury simply to vote on guilt or innocence
D)11 of the jury would be selected as normal, but number 12 would be qualified in order to be able to assist the others on complex points

Question 13

In February 1998, the Home Office issued a Green Paper entitled Juries in Serious Fraud Trials. Match the proposals to their meaning
-Verdict only juries

A)Specially trained judges, either singly or in a panel, and possibly with the help of lay experts
B)These would be made up of qualified people and might be drawn from a special pool of potential jurors
C)The judge would hear the evidence and sum up the facts, leaving the jury simply to vote on guilt or innocence
D)11 of the jury would be selected as normal, but number 12 would be qualified in order to be able to assist the others on complex points

Question 14

In February 1998, the Home Office issued a Green Paper entitled Juries in Serious Fraud Trials. Match the proposals to their meaning
-A special juror

A)Specially trained judges, either singly or in a panel, and possibly with the help of lay experts
B)These would be made up of qualified people and might be drawn from a special pool of potential jurors
C)The judge would hear the evidence and sum up the facts, leaving the jury simply to vote on guilt or innocence
D)11 of the jury would be selected as normal, but number 12 would be qualified in order to be able to assist the others on complex points

Question 15

What are the advantages of using juries?

Question 16

What are the disadvantages of using juries?

Question 17

Consider what areas the term 'jury tampering' could cover

Question 18

The most important use of juries today is in the ___ where they decided whether they defendant is guilty or not guilty

Question 19

The jury adds ___ to the law, since it gives a general verdict which cannot give rise to misinterpretation

Question 20

Lord Denning has argued that the selection of jurors is too wide, resulting in jurors that are not ___ to perform their task

Question 21

The introduction of trial by jury addressed a number of key areas of concern - what are they?

A) It does justice and decides whether the prosecution has proved its case against the defendant who is on trial
B) It helps to ensure the independence and quality of the judges
C) It gives protection against laws which the ordinary man or woman may regard as oppressive
D) It means that experts are used to help decide the outcome of the case
E) It helps to ensure the maintenance of proper behaviour by investigating officers of the defendants in their charge

Question 22

In which of the following cases did the the House of Lords hold that it was contempt of court for a newspaper to publish disclosures by jurors of what took place in the jury room while they were considering their verdict, unless the publication amounted to no more than a restatement of facts already known?

A) Gregory v UK (1998)
B) AG v Scotcher (2005)
C) Attorney General v Associated Newspapers (1994)
D) Attorney General v Scotcher (2005)
E) R v Thakrar (2008)

Question 23

What age bracket do jury members have to be between?

A) 16-60
B) 18-65
C) 21-70
D) 18-55
E) 18-70

Question 24

Some people are disqualified from jury service for ten years, other for life

Question 25

If people are called for jury service, under no circumstances can they turn it down

Question 26

The Commission for Racial Equality argues that where a case has a racial dimension and the defendant reasonably believes that he or she cannot recieve a fair trial from an all white jury, then the judge should have the power to order that three of the jurors come from the same ethnic minority

Question 27

Black defendants have a right to have black people sitting in the jury

Question 28

There are the same amount of jurors in both criminal and civil cases

Question 29

Most of the grounds for ineligibility and excusal were removed by the amendments to the Juries Act 1974

Question 30

Most jurors seem to be reasonably happy with the system despite the stress and inconvenience it can impose on them

Question 31

Which piece of legislation removed the list of persons, who could avoid jury service, the list included judges and police officers?

A) The Equality Act 2006
B) The Prosecution of Offenders Act 1985
C) The Juries Act 1974
D) The Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984
E) The Criminal Justice Act 2003

Question 32

What does the term 'jury nobbling' mean?

A) When juries are intimidated into bringing a certain verdict
B) When a member of a jury communicates with someone other than the judge whilst they retire and make their verdict
C) When a member of a jury reveals information about deliberations after the trial
D) When there is a majority verdict
E) When juries feel that they are not properly informed during the process

Question 33

Who made a range of specific recommendations to improve the performance of the jury?

A) Lord Bingham
B) Lord Woolf
C) Professor Zander
D) Sir Robin Auld
E) Lord Donaldson

Question 34

How is the jury selected?

A) Through an election
B) Through a random ballot in open court
C) Through consideration of individual competencies
D) Through selection by the Judicial Appointments Committee
E) Through an application process

Question 35

How many jurors are there usually in a criminal case?

A) 3
B) 6
C) 9
D) 12
E) 15

Question 36

What does the term 'jury vetting' mean?

A) When juries are checked to ensure racial equality
B) When juries are checked to ensure that they do not hold any extremist views
C) When juries are checked to ensure that they have a basic knowledge of the law
D) When juries are checked to discover if they have had a drug or drink problem
E) It describes the process of selecting juries based on a random ballot

Question 37

Particular concern has been expressed about the average jury's understanding of complex ___ cases