A person who’s facing criminal charges may decide that they want to present their case to a jury. It’s imperative that they face a jury of their peers, which doesn’t mean that the jurors are exactly like the defendant. Instead, it means that the jury accurately represents a cross-section of the population.
Juries aren’t set automatically. Instead, the lawyers for each side of the case will have to work together to choose a jury. This is an important part of the criminal trial, so learning how the process works is critical for anyone who’s facing charges.
Choosing a jury starts with a random selection of potential jurors from the community, often pulled from voter registration or driver’s license records. These individuals make up what’s called the jury pool. From that larger group, a smaller set is called in for voir dire, the formal jury selection process.
Formal jury selection
During voir dire, both the prosecution and defense attorneys ask potential jurors questions to assess their background, beliefs and potential biases. The goal is to identify individuals who can be fair and impartial and to remove those who can’t. The questions asked during this process can vary greatly, but may relate to the facts at the center of the case the jury is being chosen for.
Removing potential jurors
Either side can ask the judge to remove a juror for cause, which means that the juror says something that proves they can’t be impartial or that they have a bias that applies to the case. There isn’t a limit to this type of removal, but the court has to approve each one.
Jurors can also be removed through a peremptory challenge, which means that either attorney can do this without having to state a reason. The number of these challenges is limited. It’s illegal for jurors to be removed because of their gender, race or protected categories.
Once the number of jurors, including any necessary alternates, required for the case is reached, the jury is set. It’s best to have someone on your side who can ask the right questions and select an impartial jury if you’re facing criminal charges.