Chapter 14

Jury in a Cultural Context

 

 

Define petit jury/trial jury,   grand jury

 

14.1  Ordeal as a vehicle for divine intervention   Tewksbury

 

Define ordeal, bilateral ordeal, ordeal of chance

 

Natural law ideas, find a way for divine will to be known

 

Ordeal by fire and water,  put your hand in boiling water

 

Ordeal of cold water, guilty float, innocent sink

 

Ordeal of the scale, for old and infirm people

 

Ordeal of the cross, ordeal by eating consecrated bread and cheese

 

FOLLOWUP:  Compare to jury

Why have juries:  Trust reason, state, people

 

1166.  Henry II has twelve knights determine whether you go to water ordeal.

 

Early 1400s.  Murder defendant could have trial by 12 recognitors, on whether accusation was malicious.  If so, then no ordeal.

 

1215.  Church forbids clergy to have anything to do with ordeal.  Populace did not like jury trials, felt them illegitimate.

 

Early juries did not hear evidence.  Made decisions on local knowledge, reputation.

 

1500s.  Evidence allowed. 

 

1700.  Right to compel witnesses to testify comes along.

 

Shifted responsibility from king to populace, then to rule of law.

Also from divine intervention to reason.

 

14.2  Constitution of the United States, Amendments

Article III, right to jury trial.

Sixth Amendment, right to speedy and public jury trial in criminal case

Seventh Amendment, right to jury in a civil case

 

 

14.3  People v. Collins, 66 Cal.Rptr. 497 (Cal. 1968)

Question Presented:  May the prosecution use mathematical probability evidence?

 

Holding:  No.  Mathematicians do not determine guilt or innocence, juries do.

 

Facts:  Defendant and his wife convicted of second degree robbery.  Victim was walking home with groceries.  Someone pushed her to ground, stunned, but looked up and saw a young woman running from the scene.  Purse was gone.  She gave a description that somewhat but did not totally match that of the defendants.  Eyewitness thought he saw the escape, but his identification was questionable.  He said man was black, woman was white.

 

Math guy testified to the product rule, of mutually independent events.  Prosecutor asked him to calculate based on assume probabilities of white woman, blonde pony tail, and black man with beard and mustache.  See FN 1.

 

Reasoning:  Problems with this kind of evidence:

(1)  Lack of foundation for evidence and statistical theory.

(2)  Distraction of jury from its role to determine facts.  Number creates illusion of certainty.

 

14.4  Trial of the Future

Science will be able to decide cases in the future.

 

Truth serum, lie detectors, hypnosis should be used.

 

Get rid of the presumption of innocence, it's unnecessary.  Law enforcement techniques will be so good that we can assume people are guilty.