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21 Work with a partner. One of you should read the first text, while another
reads the second text. Make up a list of advantages and disadvantages of
the jury system. Justify your answers with the arguments.
The
jury
system
on trial
In the past, jury service was an important duty, but one of the problems
nowadays is that jurors don’t take this duty seriously. Recent examples
include a young woman juror who celebrated her birthday with so many
lunchtime drinks that she couldn’t continue with the trial in the afternoon.
Another juror was found filling in a job application form during a trial; both
jurors were given a fine by the judge.
Nowadays many of the people who do it think that it is inconvenient, often
a waste of time, and a loss of income (jurors only receive a small sum of
money for jury duty). Sometimes they have good reason to dislike it. Many
jurors have to wait for days in unpleasant waiting room, and then sit for
weeks in an uncomfortable courtroom on a hard chair.
Some members of the legal profession are also worried about the ability
of some jurors. In longer trials, many professional people find ways to be
excused, and so you often find that juries contain some people who
cannot read very well, and juries do not always have enough ‘well-
educated’ people who can understand what is happening.
There is also the cost: the payment of jurors is not a lot for the individual,
but costs the country over ₤30m a year.
The
other
side of
the coin
The jury system represents a person’s fundamental right to be judged by
his or her equals, that’s say, twelve men and women who come from
different sections of society. It may be not a perfect system but what is the
alternative? Judges come from a very narrow cross section of society, so
it would be impossible for them to represent the views of most ordinary
people. And can we trust the opinion of the judge, or ever two or three
judges? With twelve ordinary people you should get a reasonably
balanced judgment. And it also gives ordinary citizens responsibility in
their community and a real sense of contributing to society.
The jury system is expensive, and the cost is going up all the time, but do
we want to live in a society where justice is decided by money? When we
are making decisions about people’s lives, we must do everything
possible to be fair and just. Money should not be an issue in the
discussion.
A final point about the jury system is that most people believe it is the best
and the fairest system. And it is very important that people have faith in
their system of justice.
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