(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA, in VOA Special English. I'm SteveEmber.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Today, we examine a British legaltradition that settlers brought here centuries ago: trial by jury.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

TheUnited States Constitution

The Sixth Amendment to theConstitution establishes the right to a jury trial in all federalcriminal cases. The Seventh Amendment gives the same right in civilcases that involve more than a small amount of money. States alsohave their own laws that govern jury trials.

The United States has three kinds of juries. The most common iscalled the petit jury. Petit juries decide both criminal and civilcases. They can have as few as five or six members or as many astwelve. Often a jury trial lasts only a day or two, but some can gomuch longer.

During a trial, lawyers for opposing sides question people calledto give evidence. The lawyers also make opening and closingstatements to the jury.

VOICE TWO:

At the end, the judge makes a final statement to the jury. Thejudge explains the laws that govern the decision the jury must make.For example, in a criminal trial, the judge explains reasonabledoubt.

Under American law, a person is considered innocent until provenguilty. Jurors do not have to be completely sure that the person isinnocent. They only need to have a reasonable question in theirmind. Unless they are sure the person is guilty as charged, theymust find the suspect not guilty.

Directions to juries are often full of legal language. Californiaand other states have been trying to make them easier to understand.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Juries meet in private to reach a judgment. Most states requireall the jurors in a criminal case to agree on the verdict. A fewstates now require only a majority vote.

Graphic Image

When a jury cannot reach averdict, it is called a hung jury. There was a recent example in NewYork. A jury failed to agree on criminal charges against two formerleaders of Tyco International, a manufacturing and service company.

Dennis Kozlowski served as chief executive. Mark Swartz was chieffinancial officer. The two men were accused of stealingsix-hundred-million dollars from Tyco. Both pleaded not guilty.

VOICE TWO:

Eleven members of the jury believed the men were guilty of atleast some of the charges. The twelfth juror, however, disagreed.She held to her opinion during days of argument with other jurors.

Finally, in early April, the judge declared a mistrial with ahung jury. He blamed outside pressure on the juror. News mediausually do not report the names of jurors, at least until a trialends. However, this juror was said to have made an "O.K." sign withher hand to lawyers for the defense.

The trial lasted six months. Another trial may take place, sincethe first ended without a verdict.

VOICE ONE:

Individuals and organizations that believe they have suffered acivil wrong can bring a lawsuit in court. This process is calledfiling suit. Many lawsuits are settled out of court. If a trial isheld, jurors are not required to decide beyond a reasonable doubt,like in a criminal case. They must decide only that there is enoughevidence to support the accusations. The jury might also awardthousands or millions of dollars in damages, if requested.

VOICE TWO:

Another kind of jury is the grand jury. As many as twenty-threepeople may serve on one. The United States has two kinds of grandjuries. The charging grand jury decides if there is enough evidenceto bring someone to trial. If the jury decides there is enough, thenit indicts the person.

In April, a grand jury in California indicted Michael Jackson.The entertainer faces charges of sexual crimes with a child. A pettyjury will have to decide the case at a trial.

The other kind of grand jury is called the investigatory grandjury. Officials often call this kind of grand jury together in casesof organized crime or wrongdoing by government officials. The jurorsare asked to approve efforts to gather evidence, often secretly.

VOICE ONE:

There was an interesting case a few years ago in the state ofConnecticut. A judge acted as a one-person jury to investigate thedeath of a fifteen-year-old girl. Martha Moxley was killed innineteen-seventy-five.

Graphic Image

The judge gathered evidence thatled to the trial of a man who had lived near the girl. The man wasalso fifteen years old at the time of the killing. A petit juryfound him guilty and sentenced him to prison.

Finally, some investigations in the United States are heard by acoroner's jury. A coroner is a local medical examiner. The coronerusually calls six jurors to a hearing known as an inquest. Aninquest takes place when someone has died under suspicious orunknown conditions. The jury is asked to decide the cause of death.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Courts choose jurors from public records like lists of voters orautomobile drivers. People called to jury duty receive somequestions by mail. Are they American citizens? Do they understandEnglish? Do they have a mental or physical disability that wouldinterfere? Some people are excused for health or family reasons, orbecause they cannot take time from work. But jury service isconsidered a duty of citizenship.

A judge asks more questions once a jury is being chosen for atrial. So do lawyers for both sides in the case. Many times, theycan reject people without the need to give a reason.

In some big cases, hundreds of people are called. Lawyers may usejury experts to help them choose the ones who seem most sympathetic.Some people say this is not fair.

VOICE ONE:

Jurors are not supposed to form opinions or know too much about acase before the trial begins. But sometimes it is difficult to findsuch people.

In California, a man named Scott Peterson has been charged withthe murder of his pregnant wife, Laci. Mister Peterson denies thecharges. It would be difficult to live in the United States and nothave heard or read about this case.

Lawyers for Mister Peterson asked to have the trial moved out ofthe city where police believe the crime took place. The lawyers saidhe would not be able to get a fair trial there. So earlier this yeara judge agreed to a move.

But on May third the head of the defense team requested anotherchange. He said it was still not possible to find enough people whocould be trusted to serve as fair-minded jurors.

VOICE TWO:

There are criticisms of the American jury system. Some involveissues that divide Americans in general. One such issue is race. Anexample often used is the case of O.J. Simpson, the former actor andfootball player. Mister Simpson is black. He was charged in LosAngeles with killing his former wife and a male friend of hers, bothwhite.

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen-ninety-five, a mainly African American jury foundO.J. Simpson not guilty of criminal charges. Later, a mainly whitejury ruled against him in a civil case brought by the families ofthe victims. The jury ordered him to pay millions of dollars indamages.

Public opinion research found that most white Americans believedthat the criminal jury freed a guilty man. Most black Americansbelieved the civil jury punished an innocent man. Neither groupthought the other had acted out of a desire for justice.

Wealth is another issue for critics of the legal system. Onerecent example involves Martha Stewart. In March a jury found thebusinesswoman guilty of lying about her sale of shares in a company.

One of the jurors later said the verdict meant a defeat for therich and powerful. Commentators questioned whether the man haddecided that Martha Stewart was guilty before the trial began.

VOICE TWO:

Choosing average Americans to serve on juries is considered thedemocratic way. But legal cases are increasingly complex. Many aredifficult for the average person to understand. Yet jurors may noteven be permitted to take notes as they listen to evidence.

Legal experts sometimes say that people who would make the bestjurors do not want to serve. Or, they are not wanted. Lawyers forone side or the other might consider them too smart, and so moredifficult to influence.

Many people called to jury duty for the first time think it willnot be worth the trouble. Afterward, a common reaction is that theyenjoyed and learned from the experience. They say the jury system isnot perfect, but no one has yet to find a better way.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson and produced by CatyWeaver. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for This isAmerica, in VOA Special English.