Jury system reform defeaed in parliament

MAGISTRATES (Justices of the Peace or JPs) are judicial officers who judge cases in lower courts. They are usually unpaid and have no formal legal qualifications, but they are respectable people who are given some training.

In 1999 the UK Home Secretary Jack Straw unveiled plans to limit the right to trial by jury. In the UK defendants in certain cases can choose whether they want a trial by magistrates or by judge and jury. The Home Secretary said, "England and Wales has the only jurisdiction system where defendants have the right to choose their court. In addition, trial by jury is a more expensive process than a hearing by magistrates." Defending the proposed legislation, Mr. Straw said that it would streamline the criminal justice system, save 128 million pounds a year and prevent some defendants from "working the system".

The jury trial in its modern form stems back to 1855. Serious crimes are automatically heard by a jury as well as a wide range of middle-ranking offences such as theft and handling stolen goods. There were plans to abolish jury trials for complex fraud, cases. The Home Office pointed out the huge cost of such cases to the taxpayers and the strain on judges, juries and defendants. The government argued that some defendants abuse the current system delaying their trial by pleading not guilty in order to get a trial by jury, then changing their plea at the last moment in order to get a more lenient sentence.

In both chambers of Parliament, however, the legislation was condemned as unjust, and the bill described as "one of the worst pieces of legislation to come for many years". The majority of the MPs in the House of Commons voted against the proposals to allow magistrates to decide whether defendants accused of lesser offences should be entitled to jury trial. The Lords also condemned the bill as bringing in a two-tier system in which the rich would be able to defend their reputation but the poor would not.

Opponents of the bill believe it would have restricted a fundamental right to jury trial by one's peers and would erode public confidence in the criminal justice system. The legal profession, civil liberties groups, opposition parties and the Lords rejected Jack Straw's policy.

Exercise 2: Translate the following quotations:

The new bill is considered to be the beginning of the end for Britain's ancient jury system. The members of the public were asked a question "Do you believe it is the fairest system available or is it old-fashioned and in need of reform?"

It's clear that the system is far from ideal. Juries of ordinary people are by their very nature more influenced by emotion than facts because they aren't trained to deal with these. That being said, magistrates are probably not that much better placed to do so.

John Cahill, UK

The right for a suspect to have a jury has been welded into English law for hundreds of years. What right has Straw to deny people this basic right?

Nick, England

Flawed as the jury system is, the right to be judged by one's peers is not something that should be tossed aside lightly, and certainly not on the grounds of expense.

Kit, UK

As a retired Cop I can tell you that the rule is this: if you are guilty get a good lawyer and a jury. If you are innocent you would have a better chance with a judge only.

Ty Northcutt, USA

In real life it doesn't make much difference whether you opt for trial by jury or trial by magistrates. In the Netherlands there is no trial by jury whatsoever, still I cannot see any signs of a despotic police state looming above the horizon, democracy going to pot, or personal freedom going down the drain.

Frank Drop, The Netherlands

If a defendant is tried by a true 'jury of his peers', then a jury trial would perhaps result in justice. If, as is currently true in the United States, and possibly also in the UK, a jury is selected from people who are not peers of the defendant, who know nothing of the case, and have nothing better to do with their time then a jury trial becomes a two-ring circus. The ring which produces the best performance wins. Justice is incidental. It becomes all about winning.

Jim, USA

The idea of 12 good men/women is flawed. The jury system is a lottery and you have no guarantee that the people have an adequate grasp of the concepts involved. The courtroom is a forum for a display of semantics by lawyers and too many people are misled by it.

Lucas, UK

Trial by jury is part of what the English-speaking nations of the world understand by democracy. The ordinary people don't only decide who shall write the laws, by electing the MPs, they also decide, by serving on juries, against whom those laws shall be applied. If you argue that they are incompetent to do the latter, then by the same token you are in fact arguing that they are incompetent to do the former.

T. D. Erikson, UK

Although a jury by one's peers may have its flaws, I can think of no better or less flawed system available. Sure, it may be expensive, but since when has there been a price tag on justice? If somebody can come up with a better non-biased judicial system then please feel free. But until then, I see no better alternative.

Frederick Seal, USA

There seems to be a continual erosion of our judicial system. It's another step towards justice by decree. Magistrates are essentially illegitimate: they are not elected, nor randomly chosen; they are appointees of the State. Their use should be restricted to very minor cases. The right to be judged by one's peers is ancient and fundamental. Justice dispensed by 'experts' or officials is abhorrent.

Mark Parker, UK

The people need to be involved in the justice system. No juries, only appointed judges? I don't think so.

Joyce Cross, USA

Having worked as a Barrister's Clerk for some time I have come to the conclusion that jury trials do not always result in justice. Most criminals are accomplished liars, resulting in many juries being lead astray from the truth. As a result justice is not reached.

Hannah Bell, England

Ask many innocent victims of this flawed system. The law is a complex business and best left to those who have devoted their lives to studying it. Replace juries drawn from ordinary people with teams of professional jurors trained and qualified to perform the function.

John, England