Category Archives: Juries around the world
Jury system continues to advance in Argentina
Argentina had a funny provision in its constitution, which enabled Congress to establish a jury system. It chose not to, but that provision lingered and eventually inspired legal reformers to champion the jury system as a means of bolstering democracy … Continue reading
Australian jurors and judges disagree on sentencing
Written by Ethan Paul, undergraduate student at the Pennsylvania State University In a soon-to-be published study, Tasmanian Governor Kate Warner, former director of the Tasmania Law Reform Institute, found that juries consistently bestow more lenient sentences than do judges. Warner … Continue reading
Jury Duty as a Patriotic Act
On the eve of America’s Independence Day (July 4), legal scholar Andrew Ferguson has a new op-ed about jury duty, which plays up its potential role as “the most American thing you can do.” At CNN.com, Ferguson explains that “serving … Continue reading
First jury trial in Argentina wastes no time in setting precedent with “not guilty” verdict
New jury systems are emerging in different parts of the world, and while some have been reluctant to hand out “not guilty” verdicts (I’m looking at you, Japan), the new jury process in Buenos Aires reached such a decision at … Continue reading
The jury system comes to Argentina
The jury system is blossoming in Argentina. An article from May’s Buenos Aires Herald gives one a sense for how juries are being used. In most respects, the system being adopted resembles that being used in the U.S. Consider, for … Continue reading
Who’s afraid of older jurors?
Turns out it’s the Brits. Well, they’re not as spooked by them as they used to be. Currently, there is a limit that jurors cannot be over 70 years old, but that limit is rising to 75. As reported in … Continue reading
A global jury?
Penn State University has started a program that looks at human rights cases called “The World on Trial.” The neat twist in the show is that “juries throughout the world” review the case, as presented on the show, then “reach … Continue reading
Article shows that jury service generates positive attitudes toward the courts
A piece came out recently that shows how jury service can boost the public’s attitudes toward judges and juries. The article is: Gastil, J., Fukurai, H., Anderson, K., & Nolan, M. (2013). Seeing is believing: The impact of jury service … Continue reading
Turning Japanese (and Simplified Chinese)
Just got word today that The Jury and Democracy, the book that’s the inspiration for this blog, is being translated into “Simplified Chinese.” Yours truly confesses to not knowing there was a simple and complicated version of the language, and … Continue reading
Mixed juries: The case of Italy
We’ve all seen the headlines about the acquittal of former University of Washington student Amanda Knox, who was in her second year of a 26-year sentence for a murder in Perugia, Italy. What may have escaped notice was that the … Continue reading
Jury and Democracy Blog 