Jurors are people who are called up from the general public to judge the evidence in a trial. They are bound by ‘beyond reasonable doubt‘ and other important rules when they are making their decisions.

What isn’t allowed is for someone to plant a seed of doubt into a juror’s mind by asking them to reassess their own mental process – as you know, that can result in second-guessing oneself, and completely retracting something you understood to be true just minutes ago.

The jurors must not be told to subject their doubts to analysis – this could be the prosecution (or defence) suggesting to the jury that, ‘If you see doubts in your mind, but you think they are fanciful, you will still convict because that is not ‘reasonable doubt’. This can cause jurors to then try to figure out if their doubts are reasonable or fanciful, causing some mental gymnastics.

Reasonable doubt leaves a lot of room for doubt, so these tactics are completely banned from the courtroom. If you have any questions about jury duty or your obligations as a juror, please contact lawyer Vanessa Ash for advice.

Write your own story. Call Vanessa Ash and Associates today.