Deck 13: Trials and Juries

Question 1

The questioning of potential jurors is called

A)voir dire.
B)venire.
C)sequester.
D)inquiry.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

In a high-profile case what might be necessary to find a pool of potential jurors who could render a fair and impartial verdict, free from the taint of pretrial publicity?

A)a change in custody
B)a rebuttal
C)jury consultants
D)a change in venue

Answer 2

D

Question 3

How many challenges for cause may be made by the prosecution and the defense in a felony criminal trial?

A)five
B)ten
C)fifteen
D)an unlimited number

Answer 3

D

Question 4

What Amendment guarantees that "in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury?"

A)4th
B)5th
C)6th
D)7th

Question 5

A defendant charged with a serious offense has the right to a jury trial only if the offense is punishable by a term of incarceration of more than

A)30 days.
B)90 days.
C)6 months.
D)one year.

Question 6

In which of the following crime labs have significant error in laboratory testing been documented?

A)federal crime labs
B)members of larger juries more accurately recall evidence.
C)federal, state, and local crime labs
D)local crime labs

Question 7

Pretrial publicity can taint a jury pool.What process is supposed to screen out potential jurors who have been tainted?

A)venire
B)objections
C)voir dire
D)venue

Question 8

Included among those who are not covered by statutory exemption from serving on a jury panel are

A)police officers.
B)firefighters.
C)emergency medical personnel.
D)caregivers.

Question 9

Challenges to jurors that require a justification are called challenges

A)per se.
B)for cause.
C)by reason.
D)at law.

Question 10

Criminal trials start with two presumptions: the presumption of innocence and the presumption of

A)sanity
B)Fairness
C)reasonable doubt
D)justice

Question 11

Individuals cannot serve on juries in any state if

A)they are not citizens of the United States.
B)they have been convicted of a felony.
C)they understand English, but are illiterate.
D)All of these answers are correct.

Question 12

What is another name for trial juries?

A)grand juries.
B)petit juries.
C)bench juries.
D)non juries.

Question 13

The minimum size criminal jury approved by the U.S.Supreme Court is

A)6 persons.
B)8 persons.
C)10 persons.
D)12 persons.

Question 14

What might happen to a jury if a judge is concerned about publicity in a trial?

A)they might be nullified
B)they might be summoned
C)they might be venire
D)they might be sequestered

Question 15

What type of research do jury consultants use to profile jurors?

A)social scientific research
B)legal research
C)biological research
D)historical research

Question 16

A trial before a judge without a jury is called a(n)

A)informal trial
B)justice trial
C)magistrate trial
D)bench trial

Question 17

Challenges to jurors that do not require reasons are termed

A)automatic challenges
B)discretionary challenges
C)peremptory challenges
D)ministerial challenges

Question 18

In England, the concept of a jury functioning as an impartial fact-finding body was first formalized in 1215 in the

A)English Bill of Rights.
B)Assize of Clarendon.
C)Declaration of the Rights of Man.
D)Magna Carta.

Question 19

Neither prosecutors nor defense attorneys may use peremptory challenges to eliminate potential jurors on the basis of

A)race or sex.
B)attitude or appearance.
C)unwillingness to follow the law.
D)refusal to answer questions.

Question 20

What happens immediately prior to a jury beginning deliberations?

A)the judge instructs the jury
B)the judge sequesters the jury
C)the judge begins voir dire
D)the judge summons the venire

Question 21

Which of the following provides the best example of hearsay evidence?

A)"As best as I can recall…"
B)"Mary told me she saw…"
C)"I told my wife…"
D)"I don't remember hearing anyone say…"

Question 22

What two provisions of the U.S.Constitution often come into conflict in high-profile criminal cases?

A)The Sixth Amendment and the Seventh Amendment.
B)The Fourth Amendment and the Fifth Amendment.
C)The First Amendment and the Sixth Amendment.
D)The Seventh Amendment and the Eighth Amendment.

Question 23

What Amendment gives a criminal defendant the privilege not to testify at trial?

A)4th
B)5th
C)6th
D)7th

Question 24

Wrongful convictions have resulted from which of the following?

A)hair microscopy
B)serology
C)fingerprinting
D)All of these have contributed to wrongful convictions

Question 25

Which of the following types of evidence is generally not admissible at trial?

A)DNA
B)fingerprint
C)hair analysis
D)Polygraph

Question 26

What is a common type of post-verdict motion?

A)motion for a change of venue
B)motion for a continuance
C)motion for a new trial
D)motion for a writ of habeas corpus

Question 27

Under the Daubert standard, what is the lynchpin to admissibility?

A)probability
B)validity
C)circumstance
D)reliability

Question 28

What is it called when the jury ignores the law and acquits an obviously guilty defendant?

A)jury nullification
B)jury reversal
C)jury invalidation
D)jury obfuscation

Question 29

What case replaced Frye regarding the admissibility of scientific testimony?

A)Daubert v.Merrill-Dow Pharmaceuticals
B)J.E.B.petitioner v.Alabama
C)Kumho Tire v.Carmichael
D)Snyder v.Louisiana

Question 30

Jury consultants use mock trials to

A)test which pieces of evidence might be effective.
B)test which witnesses might be effective.
C)test which arguments might be effective.
D)test their whole case.

Question 31

What is the minimum size of a jury in noncapital criminal cases?

A)9 persons
B)6 persons
C)3 persons
D)12 persons

Question 32

What type of evidence is used to infer the existence of some fact in a dispute?

A)Circumstantial
B)Demonstrative
C)Direct
D)Testimonial

Question 33

In Sheppard v.Maxwell the U.S.Supreme Court ruled which of the following violated Sheppard's right to a fair trial?

A)bias in jury selection
B)prejudicial pretrial publicity
C)jury tampering
D)jury nullification

Question 34

What is the term indicating that a prosecutor in a criminal cases must produce some evidence to justify moving a case forward?

A)burden of proof
B)burden of evidence
C)burden of production
D)burden of instructions

Question 35

The judge explains the relevant law to the jury in the jury

A)instructions.
B)voir dire.
C)venire.
D)verdict form.

Question 36

What type of evidence serves as an auditory or visual aid to assist the fact-finder in understanding the evidence?

A)scientific evidence
B)real evidence
C)testimonial evidence
D)demonstrative evidence

Question 37

Calvin is arrested for breaking and entering and assault with a weapon.If convicted, he faces a potential sentence total of five years in prison or 10 years on probation.His attorney recommends he take a plea bargain offering him one year in prison.If he goes to trial which of the following rights does he have?

A)jurors at his trial must reach a unanimous verdict
B)the jury at his trial must have at least 8 members
C)the media will not be allowed in the courtroom
D)the right to a jury trial

Question 38

Stefanie is caught shoplifting at her local pharmacy.Which of the following is most likely true?

A)she will have to testify if her case goes to trial
B)she does not have a right to a jury trial
C)she has a right to a jury trial
D)her jury trial must have 9 members

Question 39

What is a legal yardstick measuring the sufficiency of evidence?

A)reasonable doubt.
B)totally sure.
C)absolute certainty.
D)insufficient evidence.

Question 40

Lupe is exercising her right to a jury trial in state court for attempted murder.Which of the following rights does she most like have during the trial?

A)the right to a supermajority verdict
B)the right to a unanimous verdict
C)the right to a simple majority verdict
D)the right to have no media coverage during the trial

Question 41

What do jury consultants use to test which pieces of evidence, witnesses, and arguments might be most effective in convincing people to vote a particular way?

A)focus groups
B)polls
C)mock trials
D)focus groups and polls

Question 42

Attorneys in criminal trials have an unlimited number of peremptory challenges.

Question 43

An attorney's use of peremptory challenges cannot be scrutinized by the courts.

Question 44

Basing the master jury list on voter registration tends to exclude which of the following?

A)the poor
B)the young
C)racial minorities
D)all of these answers are correct

Question 45

Failing to respond to a jury summons can result in a warrant being issued for arrest; punishments include

A)30 days in jail
B)$150 fine
C)fines or jail sentences
D)none of these answers is correct

Question 46

The voir dire process provides a way for prosecutors and defense attorneys to begin developing rapport with potential jurors.

Question 47

Alternative jurors replace regular jurors who disagree with the majority during deliberations.

Question 48

A gag order prohibits anyone involved in a case-police, prosecutor, defense attorney, defendant-from talking to the press.

Question 49

The First Amendment limits the power of judges to control media coverage of a trial.

Question 50

The U.S.Supreme Court has ruled that juries do not have to consist of 12 members.

Question 51

The venire is the master jury list.

Question 52

All persons charged with an offense for which any amount of incarceration is possible have a right to a jury trial.

Question 53

Both the adult criminal justice system and the juvenile justice system provide defendants a right to a trial by jury.

Question 54

The primary purpose of the jury is to prevent oppression by the government.

Question 55

In federal courts, defendants are entitled to a 12-person jury unless the parties agree in writing to a smaller jury.

Question 56

Trial consultants are hired most often by

A)prosecutors.
B)defense attorneys.
C)judges.
D)victims.

Question 57

Secondhand evidence is called hearsay.

Question 58

A petit jury is the jury that hears a criminal trial.

Question 59

Which of the following are requirements of jurors in virtually all states?

A)residents of the locality
B)minimum age
C)understand English
D)All of these answers are correct

Question 60

The U.S.Supreme Court has approved six-member juries in criminal cases.

Question 61

A judicial order that prohibits persons involved with the case from providing information to the media is called a _____ order.

Question 62

A trial before a judge without a jury is a(n) _____ trial.

Question 63

The minimum size of a jury approved by the U.S.Supreme Court (at least for non-capital cases) is _____ persons.

Question 64

The most frequently used source for compiling a master jury list are _____ lists.

Question 65

The defense has the opportunity to _____ each of the prosecution's witnesses.

Question 66

The prejudicial effects of pretrial publicity can sometimes be overcome by a change of _____.

Question 67

Criminal trials start with two presumptions: the presumption of sanity and the presumption of innocence.

Question 68

A jury that is unable to reach a verdict is called a hung jury.

Question 69

Evidence at trial is limited to relevant evidence.

Question 70

Information derived from hypnosis may not be used at trial.

Question 71

The continued use of some types of forensic evidence has been called into question.

Question 72

A defendant is not required to prove him or herself innocent.

Question 73

Because the prosecutor bears the burden of proof, the defense goes last in closing arguments.

Question 74

When citizens are selected to be in a jury pool, they will be notified via a(n) _____, a document that commands these selected citizens to appear at the courthouse for jury duty.

Question 75

The first step in jury selection is the compilation of the _____ jury list.

Question 76

The _____ Amendment guarantees that "in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury."

Question 77

At trial, information about the defendant's character, prior convictions, or a reputation would not normally be relevant and is, therefore, inadmissible.

Question 78

Researchers find that many jurors make a preliminary decision with regard to the outcome of a case after hearing opening statements.

Question 79

The U.S.Supreme Court has ruled that master jury lists must reflect a representative and impartial cross section of the community.

Question 80

The second step in jury selection is the drawing of the _____.