Poll of the Day > are you aware of your right as a juror to perform jury nullification?

(+) Yeah! (+)

if you think a law is stupid or the punishment is immoral, you don't have to convict somebody just because they're guilty. lawyers and judges are lying to you when they call you 'finders of fact'

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jury_nullification

---

I also heard it's good to bring this up when they are selecting jurors because lawyers hate that and it gives you a better chance of not getting selected

I thought this was common knowledge? Though knowing the general populaces education it does not surprise me if it's not.

never heard of it before, but reading about it it sounds like it's a technicality. being able to charge jurors for not finding guilty results in jurors erring on the side of guilty. so in the interest of impartiality, there is no punishment for a juror blatantly ignoring the evidence. you're not supposed to use that kind of judgement, in any case, there just is no punishment for it.

---

Sahuagin posted...

supposed

Lol. 'actuslly you're not supposed to think for yourself, you should just participate in sending people to jail for helping fugitive slaves escape'

You need to stop worshipping the state and let god into your life

---

PunishedOni posted...

actuslly you're not supposed to think for yourself

actually you are supposed to think for yourself, as it pertains to deciding if the law has been broken. you are not "supposed" to make yourself the arbiter of the law, even though there is no punishment for doing so.

---

Sahuagin posted...

actually you are supposed to think for yourself, as it pertains to deciding if the law has been broken. you are not "supposed" to make yourself the arbiter of the law, even though there is no punishment for doing so.

Oh, You're supposed to think for yourself as long as you follow the state approved guidelines on what to think. How silly of me toget that wrong.

---

When I was selected for jury duty we had a guy get removed cause he kept saying he felt he had no right to condemn another man to prison and didn't want that burder. The judge argued with him on it. But Ultimately they will remove you if they think you aren't going to be impartial.

I was removed cause of my job. Dunno how it works in all states but here each lawyer apparently is allowed to pick a certain amount of jury members to be removed and replaced.

I felt sorry for the dude. As they went around the jury asking us about ourselves. His head sank lower and lower as more and more jury members admitted to beinf law enforcement or related to law enforcement.

He was let go though. Judge ended up saying there wasnt enough evidence and threw the case before it even really started.

---

I have gotten summoned for jury duty 4 times, and each time the case gets settled before I even get asked a single question.

I haven't checked in a while, but I am probably due for a 5th time soon. Either that or it has already happened a 5th time and I don't know it because I never check my mail.

---

I have to appear on the 26th for selection.

Me not being vaxxed could get me out of it though.

---

Lynyrd_Skynyrd posted...

I also heard it's good to bring this up when they are selecting jurors because lawyers hate that and it gives you a better chance of not getting selected

I've done that in a couple of cases and managed to get out of serving on a jury; so it does work. Of course the reason has to be legit like you'd probably find in the defendants' or prosecutors' favor because of x or y reason; nobody wants a biased juror.

Aren't jurors there just for the sake of it sometimes?

Like what if this is about the dude that hacked the woman up a few months back?

Or just some random punk teenager that gets into trouble every other month?

---

I don't mind jury duty. I believe in civic duties as a citizen, but I don't judge those who try to get out of it. Realize not everyone feels the way I do, or has a living situation where performing jury duty would be too disruptive for them. I'd pull the jury nullification card if I truly felt it applied under the circumstances, though.

That said, I legally changed my last name like 12 years ago or so, and I haven't been summoned since. Supposed to get pulled once every 5 years in my state, I believe. Might just be a coincidence but I wonder if changing my name screwed something up in the system. I'm enrolled to vote under my current name, so I should be summoned at some point

---

PrettyBoyFloyd posted...

Aren't jurors there just for the sake of it sometimes?

Like what if this is about the dude that hacked the woman up a few months back?

Or just some random punk teenager that gets into trouble every other month?

you can do jury nullification in any situation in which the jury returns a guilty/not guilty verdict. even in a grand jury, you could essentially do the same thing by returning a no bill

---

also i would advocate against talking about jury nullification during the jury selection process. you won't get to use it if you do that 'cause the lawyers will kick you out

---

No, I dont think theyd put me on a jury though. Im too weird

---

Cruddy_horse posted...

I thought this was common knowledge? Though knowing the general populaces education it does not surprise me if it's not.

The legal system tends to go out of its way to keep people from realizing it exists, because they really, really don't like people taking power into their own hands.

If you're the sort of person who actually studies how the US legal system works you'll probably find out about it eventually, but how many of those actually exist in the general populace? A lot of rebellious subcultures tend to try and broadcast its existence as much as possible (usually to use as a weapon for their own ideological battles), but the vast majority of people have no idea it's a thing.

Worse, because of the usual preamble the court will give you as part of a jury about having to determine guilt or innocence based solely on the evidence presented to you in the trial itself, a lot of jurors will assume jury nullification is technically illegal/wrong even if its explained to them. Which is a large part of why the court phrases that preamble that way in the first place.

It's also why, as people have pointed out, you can often get thrown out of voir dire during jury selection if you admit to knowing what it is and being willing to use it. They don't want you in the jury explaining to the other jurors what it is.



Sahuagin posted...

never heard of it before, but reading about it it sounds like it's a technicality. being able to charge jurors for not finding guilty results in jurors erring on the side of guilty.

Basically, it boils down to the idea of "I don't think this law should exist, therefore I will declare the accused 'Not Guilty' even if I think they actually did the thing they're accused of."

In theory, if enough juries engage in jury nullification and keep finding violations of a given law in favor of the defendant, it essentially becomes a common law negation of the law in question. And the law may be overturned.

In modern times it probably comes up most often related to drug offenses, if you don't think minor drug offenses (mostly marijuana) should result in major punishment. But in theory it can be used in any scenario where you object to the morality/ethics/logic of a given law.
---

As a juror it is your god given right and your god given duty to nullify all bullshit laws

---

PunishedOni posted...

As a juror it is your god given right and your god given duty to nullify all bullshit laws

Id agree. Both of mine where felony charges regarding stealing of a firearm. One had the added charge of possesion of a fire arm by a felon.

One got thrown out before the case even started cause the judge felt the evidence was lacking. Why that couldn't have been determined before wasting my day Idk.

The other one the dude just went ahead pled guilty right after the jury was selected.

---

Didn't read my paperwork right.

Said to call the evening prior.

"Failure to call may result in an unnecessary appearance."

Apparently my services aren't needed for another two years according to the recorded message.

Don't know how they know who's calling or if it's just some random shit they mail out or everything got cancelled again because of the plague.

Anyway I now have a free day off from work.


---

I got selected for jury duty once, but I had to call and have them pick someone else because it was pretty far away and I don't drive.

---

Gaawa_chan posted...

I got selected for jury duty once, but I had to call and have them pick someone else because it was pretty far away and I don't drive.

Didn't have "too far to drive" in the checkbox options on mine.

Guess they figured too many would used that option for no real reason.

---

i would love to get jury duty and be selected

i don't even care if it would be for the most mundane thing

---

I was removed from the jury pool the one time I was selected for it because of my education/background. I've got a degree in forensics so I guess I'm too whatever involved to be an impartial juror.

---