Kaila
SF VIP
I have not served as a Juror, and I am wondering
what limitations there are,
on what jurors are allowed to tell the other jurors,
about their own life experiences, their personal past, and their resultant views and present feelings, while they discuss with each other,
whether witnesses seemed credible, the validity of things they heard in the courtroom, regarding the case, and why they each hold certain beliefs and how they came to whichever conclusions, they each hold about the verdicts.
In worst case scenario, if the jurors had discussed together, something in a juror's past, that then influenced other jurors, could that render their concluding verdict possibly invalid?
Or would it open a possibility that a lawyer could claim that a juror should have been screened out during jury selection;
and if so, how large an effect could that have, after a case had been concluded?
Example:
If a juror said, that they do not believe that a person who had been robbed would say what a primary witness had said.
And if I as another juror, told the jurors, that I had been robbed years ago, and I had said that.
If that influenced others on the jury to change their minds, and find a defendant guilty, could it lead to invalidating the final verdict?
Or, might that only happen, if I had not been upfront about my past experiences, during jury selection?
(Again, please note that I have not served on any jury.
I just decided it was easiest to explain my question, by using myself as a hypothetical juror. )
what limitations there are,
on what jurors are allowed to tell the other jurors,
about their own life experiences, their personal past, and their resultant views and present feelings, while they discuss with each other,
whether witnesses seemed credible, the validity of things they heard in the courtroom, regarding the case, and why they each hold certain beliefs and how they came to whichever conclusions, they each hold about the verdicts.
In worst case scenario, if the jurors had discussed together, something in a juror's past, that then influenced other jurors, could that render their concluding verdict possibly invalid?
Or would it open a possibility that a lawyer could claim that a juror should have been screened out during jury selection;
and if so, how large an effect could that have, after a case had been concluded?
Example:
If a juror said, that they do not believe that a person who had been robbed would say what a primary witness had said.
And if I as another juror, told the jurors, that I had been robbed years ago, and I had said that.
If that influenced others on the jury to change their minds, and find a defendant guilty, could it lead to invalidating the final verdict?
Or, might that only happen, if I had not been upfront about my past experiences, during jury selection?
(Again, please note that I have not served on any jury.
I just decided it was easiest to explain my question, by using myself as a hypothetical juror. )