I like the written questions thing, but I don’t think the jury should have the ability to grant or deny additional time, for two reasons:
Since we’re talking about an inexpert jury here (right? I know somebody proposed an expert jury below), they’ll need to be learning about the law as they go. If they have to learn about what conditions ought to mean additional time should or should not be granted, that’s taking away time and effort away that they could be using to learn about the evidence and the relevant laws.
More importantly, it would reintroduce the problem of lawyers being able to delay cases for as long as they can (which they will of course do if things look like they aren’t going their way). In a short time, it’s probably easier to convince a jury that you need more time then it is to convince them that the evidence points one way or another. I can imagine the system becoming one where extra time is granted nearly always, and the “Do you think the trial should continue?” question to the jury seen as just a formality.
Well, yeah. Most trials won’t be open-and-shut. The point is, the jury can effectively say at any point, “enough of this bullshit, we’re ready to make a decision.” Lawyers on both sides would be motivated to present their strongest evidence first, and even a jury inexperienced in intricacies of law would likely be able to recognize who’s got something to say and who’s just stalling for time.
The downside is that we remember the last things the best. So if the most important things are presented first, their importance will be partly forgotten.
It is worse when the important things are presented in the middle. We are better at remembering both the first things (primacy effect) and last things (recency effect).
What about making it the jury’s option to grant or deny additional time for explanation, in addition to letting them submit written questions?
I like the written questions thing, but I don’t think the jury should have the ability to grant or deny additional time, for two reasons:
Since we’re talking about an inexpert jury here (right? I know somebody proposed an expert jury below), they’ll need to be learning about the law as they go. If they have to learn about what conditions ought to mean additional time should or should not be granted, that’s taking away time and effort away that they could be using to learn about the evidence and the relevant laws.
More importantly, it would reintroduce the problem of lawyers being able to delay cases for as long as they can (which they will of course do if things look like they aren’t going their way). In a short time, it’s probably easier to convince a jury that you need more time then it is to convince them that the evidence points one way or another. I can imagine the system becoming one where extra time is granted nearly always, and the “Do you think the trial should continue?” question to the jury seen as just a formality.
Well, yeah. Most trials won’t be open-and-shut. The point is, the jury can effectively say at any point, “enough of this bullshit, we’re ready to make a decision.” Lawyers on both sides would be motivated to present their strongest evidence first, and even a jury inexperienced in intricacies of law would likely be able to recognize who’s got something to say and who’s just stalling for time.
The downside is that we remember the last things the best. So if the most important things are presented first, their importance will be partly forgotten.
It is worse when the important things are presented in the middle. We are better at remembering both the first things (primacy effect) and last things (recency effect).