...their ethnicity due to their family member’s or particular followers. If the jury is particularly White/ Caucasian, and the defendant is African- American, there is generally a bias that people are racially condoning that individual to prison or jail time, but if the whole jury is African- American, the jury might have some leniency towards that particular individual to the point of reaching jury nullification (Kennedy, 1997). • Include contemporary examples of ethnicity-based jury nullification. One example of a contemporary jury nullification is a case that happened in Pennsylvania in 2009. The event happened in rural Pennsylvania. The case was about two teenage boys at the time, Derrick Donchak, 19, and Brandon Piekarsky, 17. They brutally killed a Mexican immigrant by kicking him while convulsing on the ground (Neiwert, 2009). The man they killed was named Luis Ramirez. The jury panel were all White and had strong roots against Mexican immigrants (Neiwert, 2009). The article mentions that even the judge and the community itself, showed signs of being racially biased towards Mexican immigrants. After deliberation the jury basically found the teens not guilty of any charges. Luis Ramirez died at the hospital two days after the incident and the teens walked free from any kind of prosecution (Neiwert, 2009). •Summarize the arguments for and against ethnicity-based jury nullification. Some of...
Words: 702 - Pages: 3
...Race-based jury nullification is a practice that has been around for many years and occurs when jurors oppose to the law and refuse to convict a defendant despite significant proof that the individual is guilty. The 14th amendment guarantees all persons no matter race or sex are allowed due process and equal protection from the law. This paper will provide detailed information about whether ethnicity influences courtroom proceedings and judicial practices, there will be arguments for and against ethnicity-based jury nullification, contemporary examples of ethnicity-based jury nullification and it will conclude by choosing a position for or against ethnicity-based jury nullification. We have seen many examples of suspected jury nullification through the “Bronx Juries”. “This term originally described a jury consisting mostly of minorities in the Bronx, New York that refuses to convict minority defendants. Today, “Bronx juries” are not limited to the Bronx but extend to other cities with large minority populations, such as Baltimore, Maryland” (Keneally, 2010, pg. 946). Race should never be a deciding factor during jury deliberation. Jurors should follow the full extent of the law, and should not put their personal beliefs before there civic duty as a juror. When trying to decide whether or not ethnicity influences court room proceedings and judicial practices, the information was unable to provide definitive proof one way or the other. Some of the research that was found was...
Words: 1128 - Pages: 5
...Courtroom: Ethnicity Based Jury Nullification Josi Barth CJA/344 November 18, 2014 Bernice Baver Unfair Practices in the Courtroom: Ethnicity Based Jury Nullification On the television today, many of the most dramatic parts of the programming revolve around courtroom proceedings. An overzealous prosecutor asking tough and often damning questions to a pitiful guilty looking defendant is the main focus for the audience. The part that is often unseen and overlooked is ethnicity and the role it plays in the criminal justice system when it comes to courtroom proceedings and judicial practices. When it comes to these situations, there appears to be a certain amount of bias or indifference to minority citizens (The Criminology and Criminal Justice Collective of Northern Arizona University, 2009). Because of these biases, many minorities have little to no confidence in the court systems and subsequently are less likely to bring his or her case to court. For a further look into how ethnicity influences courtroom proceedings and judicial practices, one can analyze arguments for and against ethnicity based jury nullification and contemporary examples of jury nullification. Jury nullification is defined as the process that allows juries to acquit when the facts of the case suggest a conviction. This allows citizens to play a larger role in deciding guilt and who is punished (Mcnamara & Burns, 2009, Chapter 11). Ethnicity based jury nullification occurs when a defendant...
Words: 1079 - Pages: 5
...Team C: Jury Nullification CJA/344 October 15, 2012 Team C: Jury Nullification Jury nullification has been a growing concern throughout the years for many Americans. Jury nullification is a constitutional doctrine that allows juries to acquit guilty defendants but who do not deserve punishment. Many believe that when this sort of action takes place the jury racially identify with the criminal defendant. There have been several cases for an example: the O.J Simpson case or the police officers in the Rodney King beating. The evidence was visible, but the verdict was not guilty. This paper includes how and if ethnicity influences courtroom proceedings and judicial practices, arguments against ethnicity-based jury nullification, contemporary examples of ethnicity based-jury nullification, and by choosing a position for or against ethnicity-based jury nullification. Ethnicity Influences and Judicial Practices There have been plenty of attempts to advance equal justice in the United States (Ward, Farrell, & Rousseau, 2009). In the criminal justice administration disparity still remains a concern. Criminal justice research on sentencing has found disparity based on defendant characteristics as gender, race, and class. There have been two changes by many individuals to secure equal justice in the court system. Implementations of sentencing guidelines, reduce bias, and increased racial and ethnic group representation among arbiters...
Words: 1685 - Pages: 7
...CJA 344 Week 3 ury Nullification Paper Assignment: Jury Nullification Paper CJA/ 344 Week 4 November 25, 2012 Mr. Jones CJA 344 Week 3 Assignment Jury Nullification Paper Ongoing debate exists on the issue of whether indeed ethnicity influences proceedings in the court room or not. Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor said in a 2001 speech that a judge's gender and ethnicity does, and should, influence his or her decision-making on the bench. Sotomayor made the comments on October 26, 2001, at a University of California-Berkeley symposium marking the 40th anniversary of the first Latino named to the federal district court. She states something very relevant to this which was, "I wonder whether by ignoring our differences as women or men of color we do a disservice both to the law and society," she said at the event, sponsored by the law school. "I further accept that our experiences as women and people of color affect our decisions. The aspiration to impartiality is just that — it's an aspiration because it denies the fact that we are by our experiences making different choices than others." "Our gender and national origins may and will make a difference in our judging. This is not to say that all African Americans, all Latinos or all women share the same views and life experiences. This too would be a silly position. But it is to say that in our society, factors such as race, gender and social class...
Words: 1149 - Pages: 5
...Ethnicity and the Courts Tina Martin-Fleming CJA/344 August 28, 2014 Thomas Bullock Jury Nullification is the process that allows members of the juror to acquit a defendant for crimes they do not feel is grounds for punishment. Although, many jurors may not know this is an option to many cases, it is still an option. If citizens use this option in many of the courtroom proceedings, there will be fewer people who are serving time in prison. On the other hand, this does interfere with the decision- making process. This paper will explain whether ethnicity influences courtroom proceedings and judicial practices. It will summarize the arguments for and against ethnicity-based jury nullification. Including contemporary examples of ethnicity-based jury nullification and my position for or against ethnicity based jury nullification and the defense of that decision. Explain whether Ethnicity Influences Courtroom proceedings and Judicial Practices In today’s society ethnicity does have an effect on courtroom proceedings and judicial practices. Crime has increased significantly over the years particularly in poverty stricken areas that are more likely to have a higher rate of crime than those other areas. This issue has raised many concerns of this criminal behavior. Racial issue still and will always be an issue with the court system as long as we as a people keep it in existence. To eliminate these barriers would be to educate the police and all persons who are seeking Criminal...
Words: 1252 - Pages: 6
...Jury Nullification In the American criminal justice system, the jury plays a significant role in the fate of a defendant who is on trial. The jury’s role is to evaluate the facts presented by both the prosecution and the defense, and decide whether those facts are substantial enough to convict, or not to convict, a person of the crime for which they are accused. This has been a cornerstone of American justice since before the country’s birth. The right of a trial by a jury of peers is an inalienable right guaranteed to everyone, and is protected by the Constitution. The rights of a jury are also inherent. A jury has a right to nullify, or disregard, the instructions of a court and the facts of a case in coming to a decision. Oftentimes, however, juries are intentionally not informed of this right. Many critics of jury nullification claim that its excercise and application leads to a lawless society (Scheflin, Van Dyke, 1991: 424). California’s jury instructions state that the jury must perform their duty uninfluenced by pity or sentiment for a defendant or passion or prejudice against them, while Maryland’s jury instructions state that while the facts about what the law says are meant to be helpful they may disregard them as they see fit (Bonsignore, et al:428). The practice of jury nullification in the United States dates back to the colonial period of our nation. In 1735, John Peter Zenger was arrested by the British government and charged...
Words: 820 - Pages: 4
...|Week Three Paper |Max Pts |Your Pts | |Word Count |1 |1 | |APA |2 |2 | |Gram. Sp. Punct. |1 |1 | | | | | |Defining Terms |1 |1 | |Examples used |2 |2 | |Content |3 |3 | |TOTAL |10 |10 | Jury Nullification Paper Therese Carlon June 3, 2012 Joseph Mariconda The United States Declaration of Independence has been viewed over the first two centuries as one of the definitive government documents that spell out both racial and ethnic equality for all Americans. However, there is a section of this worthy document that refers to one of the foundational premises for our founding freedoms: “That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to...
Words: 1648 - Pages: 7
...Jury Nullification Jury selection plays a significant role in the criminal justice system. Their primary role of the jury lies within the courtroom setting during criminal proceedings. These individuals are charged with the responsibility of hearing testimony from the prosecution and defense and also evaluating any evidence brought before the court. Their understanding and interpretation of all testimony and evidence greatly determine the final result of the trial, the verdict. In many circumstances a jury may dismiss the testimony and evidence and inject their own personal opinions regarding the law. This is known as jury nullification. Jury nullification permits juries to acquit even when the facts of the case suggest they convict, and thus enables citizens to play a more active role in determining justice and what or whom should be punished (McNamara & Burns, 2009, p. 265). Influence of Ethnicity within the Courtroom An individual’s race or ethnicity can have a substantial influence on courtroom proceedings and judicial practices. Many people, regardless of their own race, have preconceived notions of individuals that are charged with a criminal offense. Much of these preconceptions are fueled by the media, especially when these cases involve a white victim and minority perpetrator or vice versa. The media tends to glamorize and indulge these types of crimes because they equate to good ratings. Often times this media coverage finds its way into the courtroom and can...
Words: 1101 - Pages: 5
...In today’s legal system, a jury has the power to return a "not guilty" verdict even when the defendant is clearly guilty. In cases like this, the jury may decide that the law should not be applied in the particular case or that the law is unjust. Other times, it may be completely bias against the subjects in question. For example, during the Civil Rights era, an all-white jury may find another white man innocent, even if he clearly killed an African American. This power is called jury nullification and is not a justified response to any verdict. One of the main concerns of jury nullification is that it allows the people to take the law into their own hands. For example, one can imagine a wife being beaten and abused by her husband. He makes her life miserable and one day she snaps and is unable to take the pressure of his tyranny. After all the stress builds up, she ends up murdering him in his sleep. When standing trial the jury may feel sorry for the defendant. Though her actions may appear as self defense on the ability for her to live a happy life, she still had committed cold blood murder. She could have gone to the police about her husband. Some arguments of individuals in favor of jury nullification may be that it is a good thing because it empowers the jury to do what is right rather than just look at the facts of the case. As well as it gives the jury the opportunity to .. Although these are somewhat valid facts in favor of Jury nullification, it comes back to rule of...
Words: 361 - Pages: 2
...Prof. Weeramantry contends that the present hostilities are illegal under international law. It is curious that the one issue which never fails to be brought up in discussions about the US decision to attack Iraq is the question of legality and “international law”. Those who raise it contend that under “international law” the US did not have the “right” to attack Iraq because it had not satisfied the requirements of the law for doing so. The implication is that any discussions of potential danger Iraq represents to us are moot because it is illegal for us to do anything about it anyway. The fact that Iraq's military and security services have been used to ethnically cleanse whole areas of Iraq does not seem to matter either. When ethnic cleansing was at its height in Bosnia the same critics pointed out that the United States is signatory to a variety of conventions relating to human rights, national sovereignty, and cases of genocide that required it to intervene in force as a matter of “international law”. Many who favored an attack tend to ignore the whole issue of international law, or directly claim that there isn't any such thing. I like many others do not believe in it, nor do I believe in an International Criminal Court. What is law? It is the rules that a society sets and enforces on its members. What is its purpose? What should it accomplish? Ah! Therein lies the proverbial rub. There has been no consensus in history on that. Different societies in different...
Words: 4378 - Pages: 18
...King Cotton It was a slogan used by southerners to support the secession of the South from the North as the money obtained from cotton export would support the Confederacy. It would also support countries such as Britain and France to support the Confederacy as opposed to the North as the economies of these countries heavily depended on the textile industry. It was a failure as other countries did not want to get into the conflict. In foreign affairs, the South had been initially confident of the power and influence of “King Cotton,” the crop that accounted for more than half the value of U.S. exports before the war. Confederates felt that the importance of cotton would force diplomatic recognition from the Federal government and European countries. Neither the commissioners sent abroad in 1861 nor the permanent envoys who replaced them were able to secure recognition from Great Britain, France, or any other European power. The South was able, however, to buy considerable war matériel and several fast ships that destroyed much Federal shipping on the high seas. South = one crop economy By 1840 - 50% of US exports was cotton / was providing 50% of the world supply / providing 75% of England’s supply 1/5 of workers tied to the textile industry but cotton also drives northern economy - needs cotton for textiles (supporting abolition and making $ off slavery). Different economies of the North and South between 1815-1861 North: Industrial Abolition slavery No need...
Words: 2088 - Pages: 9
...1. Explain what you think the role of a paralegal is in the litigation process. Reflect on your own personal skills and if you like litigation practice. The role of a paralegal in the litigation process is to provide a win-win solution to the cost of legal services as most people cannot afford the services of a lawyer. Paralegals engage in substantive legal work, the kind of work that lawyers do with certain limitations and prohibitions. Based on my own personal skills such as filing of small claims, paralegals are engaged in real legal work, provided as paralegals are appropriately supervised, the lawyers for whom paralegals work are able to engage in other legal work. I like litigation practice because paralegals are of service to the clients. Clients will receive a smaller bill when legal assistants are used effectively because the work of legal assistants is billed at a lesser rate than that of lawyers. The use of paralegals allows more members of society to be able to afford legal services, while at the same time allows employing lawyers at private law firms to increase their earnings. Paralegal is a highly demand profession which makes me reflect that litigation practice is a rewarding career. 2. As a paralegal what documents should you attempt to obtain before a lawsuit is filed during the informal fact-gathering stage? What sources are available to you to locate these documents? The attorney’s work product, now called “trial preparation materials.”...
Words: 3519 - Pages: 15
...Is America Returning to the Wild, Wild West? I envision a time and a place that allows people to walk around with gun holsters containing polished semi automatic weapons and a right to use them at their own discretion. Gentlemen who disagree at a bar can take their argument to the street, where they engage in a legal duel. A shopkeeper who pulls out a gun and shoots a young teenager to death because he caught her trying to steal more than five hundred dollars in goods. Or how about a good old fashioned shoot out? If you were thinking that I was referring to a small western town back in the late eighteen hundreds, you'd be wrong. The wild, wild west has made a comeback to modern America. That era, synonymous with lawlessness and vigilante justice is being revived in essence by the introduction of legislation called "Stand Your Ground". Currently, there is a debate raging in our country over the rights of gun owners in regards to gun control and startling increases in justifiable homicides all over the United States. Recently, there was an incident that sparked a huge backlash against the National Rifle Association (NRA) and their support of a law called "Stand Your Ground". The law states that "... a person is justified in the use of deadly force and does not have a duty to retreat if: (1) He or she reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself or herself or another or to prevent the imminent commission of a forcible...
Words: 3554 - Pages: 15
...and the accessibility to a lawyer according to the Sixth Constitutional Amendment. The Eighth Constitutional Amendment bans cruel and unusual punishment while the Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures. The words ‘people’ and ‘individual’ occur frequently in the Constitution and do not specify a certain group of people or whether a person must be a United States citizen for these amendments to take effect. Michael E. Cannon, member of the military service for over twenty-two years, noted that these amendments are not followed through when it comes to investigations outside of the United States, notoriously in the Middle East where countless infamous prisons torture prisoners daily, such as Abu Ghraib (Cannon). Many arguments are made as to whether torture should or should not be used during investigations. Torture, in some circumstances, has been shown to aid investigations or in some way break the prisoner. Americans feel secure knowing that they are controlling people from the same nationality or religion as those who hurt the nation tremendously a few years ago. Although the safety of United States’ citizens is a vital necessity and a right when living in the nation, it should not take precedent over the torture-free lives of others. Torturing began to surface in investigations after the events of September 11, 2001 when terrorists crashed planes into the Twin Towers. Since the tragic day, torture techniques surfaced in order to link people to terrorist...
Words: 2782 - Pages: 12
