Combination of Smaller Juries with Nonunanimous Verdicts

At one point the state jurisdictions wanted to save money by using smaller juries. One state actually tried to implement this into law, but the court ruled against it. In the case of Burch v. Louisiana, the court ruled that a unanimous six-person jury was not permitted by the constitution in serious, noncapital cases (Ingram, 2009). Louisiana wished to reduce costs by having a smaller jury, but the court decided that this was an insufficient justification to use a nonunanimous six-person jury (Ingram, 2009). The reason for this decision is because the court claimed that any attempt to introduce nonunanimity in legal equation would threaten the constitutional principles (Ingram, 2009). In conclusion the court refused to move away from twelve person juries. Removal of Prospective Jurors: Proper …show more content…
These circumstances consist of whether the juror shows bias, prejudice, or interest involving the case (Ingram, 2009). These circumstances can affect a juror’s decisions within a case. The juror could be biased into making a decision based on their personal views. Also, it is clear that a juror being prejudice in any way could result in a biased decision as well. Therefore, the prosecution and the defense can remove a prospective juror if these circumstances are met. It is important to note that peremptory challenges to prospective jurors permit the prosecution or defense attorneys to remove any juror for any reason or for no reason at all (Ingram, 2009). However, the prosecution and defense have a set number of peremptory challenges that they can claim. Also, there is a constitutional limitation on the number of peremptory challenges that one can make. When the prosecution or defense use a prohibited reason to remove a potential juror, then such limitations will be