Deck 9: The Jury

Question 1

What is the name of the process that occurred during the Middle Ages in which a defendant would perform some dangerous task to prove his or her innocence?

A) trial by fire
B) trial by ordeal
C) trial by torture
D) trial by endurance

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which document, signed in 13th-century England, was supposed to have granted a right to trial by a judgment of his peers?

A) the Articles of Confederation
B) the Rights of Free Men
C) the Treaty of Versailles
D) the Magna Carta

Answer 2

D

Question 3

What ruling came from the suit filed by Edward Bushell, filed in England in 1670?

A) Verdicts must be given by jurors.
B) Jurors cannot be bribed.
C) Juries must not be coerced.
D) Juries can be overruled by a judge.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The verdict in the trial of John Peter Zenger is an example of ______.

A) judicial misconduct
B) jury nullification
C) voir dire
D) jury reform

Question 5

What type of discretion does the jury have in interpreting evidence and establishing the facts of a case?

A) limited discretion
B) enumerated
C) The jury has no discretion.
D) virtually unlimited discretion

Question 6

Which of the following are jurors not typically told at the close of the trial, before deliberations?

A) to consider only the facts presented
B) not to consider evidence or testimony that they were to disregard
C) to apply the facts to the law
D) to consider how the crime impacted the victim

Question 7

In which case did the Supreme Court hold that the right to trial by jury for serious offenses was a fundamental right and applicable to the states?

A) Duncan v. Louisiana
B) Payne v. Tennessee
C) Muniz v. Hoffman
D) Acevedo v. California

Question 8

Defendants are entitled to a trial by a jury for all ______.

A) trials
B) felonies
C) cases that may result in imprisonment of more than 6 months
D) cases that may result in any imprisonment

Question 9

When a jury is unable to reach a unanimous verdict, ______.

A) the verdict is decided by the majority
B) the jury is held in contempt of court
C) the defendant is declared not guilty
D) a mistrial is declared

Question 10

In Ballew v. Georgia (1978), the Court unanimously held the minimum number of jurors must be ______.

A) 6
B) 9
C) 10
D) 12

Question 11

State juries must consist of ______ jurors.

A) at least 6
B) at least 9
C) at least 12
D) exactly 12

Question 12

A jury with fewer than six members is ______.

A) inadvisable
B) illiterate
C) unconstitutional
D) recommended

Question 13

What is required of verdicts in six-person juries?

A) majority verdicts
B) Six-person juries are unconstitutional.
C) Five of the six jurors must agree.
D) unanimous verdicts

Question 14

The jury selection process is designed to achieve two goals: to ensure that a fair cross section of the community is included as potential jurors and to ______.

A) give the defendant the greatest opportunity for acquittal
B) provide the lowest likelihood of conviction
C) provide the highest likelihood of conviction
D) permit the seating of individual jurors who are unbiased with regard to the case on which they serve

Question 15

When first established, jury wheels consisted primarily of ______.

A) voter registration lists
B) telephone directories
C) driver's license lists
D) jury volunteer lists

Question 16

The name for the group of individuals who report for jury duty at a given time is the ______.

A) master jury list
B) secondary jury list
C) venire
D) voir dire

Question 17

In general, how many peremptory challenges are available to attorneys in noncapital cases when choosing a jury?

A) 4-6
B) 10-12
C) 16-20
D) 25-30

Question 18

In what manner is a jury's question most commonly posed to a witness?

A) The jury foreman asks the witness directly.
B) The juror with the question asks the witness directly.
C) The judge asks the witness on behalf of the jury.
D) The prosecution asks the witness on behalf of the jury.

Question 19

Which of the following is typically not found in a juror's trial notebook?

A) a list of potential defenses
B) jury instructions
C) a list of witnesses
D) copies of key documents

Question 20

The option of jury nullification is found ______.

A) in the First Amendment
B) in the Sixth Amendment
C) in the Tenth Amendment
D) nowhere in the Constitution

Question 21

What options are available to the court if a jury engages in jury nullification?

A) retrial of the defendant
B) charge the defendant with a lesser offense
C) hold the jury in contempt of court
D) none of these

Question 22

Which of the following is not a typical example of a case that may end in the use of jury nullification?

A) euthanasia
B) three-strikes laws
C) medical marijuana use
D) armed robbery

Question 23

Trial by jury was originally a purely American concept.

Question 24

The "American jury system" predated the Declaration of Independence.

Question 25

One role of jurors is to determine the true facts of the case.

Question 26

Under the law, the jury's role in the criminal justice process is that of law finder.

Question 27

Jurors have always been allowed to take notes during a trial.

Question 28

Jurors are allowed to read peer-reviewed scholarly works (journals) to expand their knowledge on the subject at hand.

Question 29

In murder cases where life imprisonment or death is a possible sentence, jurors are instructed to consider the weight of possible sentences if the defendant is found guilty.

Question 30

Many states did not provide trials by jury until that portion of the Bill of Rights was incorporated by the Fourteenth Amendment.

Question 31

Unanimous verdicts are always mandated for a verdict to be handed down.

Question 32

Jury summons have high return rates.

Question 33

Voir dire is the process in which jurors are questioned to determine if they will sit as a juror for a particular trial.

Question 34

Peremptory challenges are limited in number.

Question 35

Allowing jurors to take notes during a trial is a relatively new occurrence.

Question 36

Some jury reform measures involve jury management practices.

Question 37

Jury nullification can only be used to find a defendant not guilty.

Question 38

What's the significance of trial by jury in the United States?

Question 39

Explain the role of the Sixth Amendment and the right to trial.

Question 40

Under the "key-man" system, which group was favored?

Question 41

Discuss the significance of Duncan v. Louisiana (1968).

Question 42

Discuss the two aspects of the use of juries not addressed in the Constitution.

Question 43

Discuss the significance of Ballew v. Georgia with respect to its effect on jury size.

Question 44

Discuss the first step in the jury selection process.

Question 45

Explain the venire and its role in the jury selection process.

Question 46

Explain the significance of voir dire.

Question 47

Explain what has been done over the last quarter of a century to reform the jury system.

Question 48

Explain why it is so important that juries reach a unanimous verdict.

Question 49

Explain why it is that juries cannot be smaller than 6 people or larger than 12.

Question 50

What are the restrictions on the jury as fact finder?