The people that will serve justice in this proceeding already have their notices in hand, requiring them to appear at the courthouse as potential jurors. They just don't know yet, and neither do we, who the actual jurors will be.
Picking a jury in the California criminal trial isn't that much different from picking a Florida personal injury jury here in Miami.
Citizens get a notice with instructions on the time and date they are to come to the official jury room. Lots of people show up. There's parking to deal with - where to park, cash to bring, and decisions to be made on reading material and snacks to take.
Once there, citizens find they are part of a big group of people who got similar notices. Out of that big group, smaller ones are chosen to go to courtrooms and be part of the selection process for particular trials.
The big group waits around, reading the paper or eating chips from a machine, until a court representative sends word that a jury is needed and another bunch of people need to be sent up to that court. There's a lunch break.
Picking the Jury: Questions That May Seem Too Personal
Meanwhile, trial attorneys are getting ready to question the group because they need to know that those folk who get on the jury will be fair.
No one wants the defendant's sister in law on the jury - except the defendant. And these questions are prepared in advance, lots of time goes into what to quiz the jurors.
In personal injury trials where millions or billions of dollars is at stake, professional jury consultants will be hired to assist the lawyers in jury selection. They may go so far as to have "ghost juries" to track the proceedings in the courtroom or practice panels for jury selection preparation.
Information on potential jurors will be provided to both sides by the court clerk - attorneys will know in advance where they live, how old they are, things like that.
Dr. Murray - Michael Jackson Manslaughter Trial Jury Selection Questions
TMZ has published a partial list of the questions that Murray's attorneys will be asking during jury selection. Here are a couple of examples - questions that might well be asked in a personal injury trial as much as a criminal one:
- At what age should a person be held accountable for their decisions, actions and consequences?
- Do you have a blog? If so, describe.
- Are you active on social networks. If so, which?
Why ask about blogs or Facebook or Twitter?
For one thing, these questions can lead to follow up questions - what's your blog about? have you ever blogged about product recalls? etc. Individual questions that will reveal more about the potential juror. For example, Dr. Murray may want responsible business owner types, while his opposition will probably want dedicated music fans.
Will those blogs and Facebook pages and Twitter tweets be read as part of jury selection in Dr. Murray's trial? What do you think?
By on March 24, 2011 1:04 PM
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