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year 2
Unit 3
AC 2.5
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Created by
Lucy Huddleston
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Cards (54)
Who are laypeople in the legal system?
Ordinary members of the public
without specialized
legal
knowledge
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What roles do laypeople serve in the English legal system?
As members of
juries
and as
magistrates
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In which court do juries sit for most cases?
Crown Court
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What is the jury's role in Crown Court trials?
To hear
evidence
and
arguments
and decide the verdict
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What must jurors be convinced of to deliver a guilty verdict?
Beyond reasonable doubt
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What does the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 state about jurors' deliberations?
They are taken in secret and cannot be questioned about their
verdict
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How are jurors selected in the UK?
Randomly
by
computer
from the
electoral
register
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What is the typical duration of jury service?
Normally for
two
weeks
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What are the eligibility requirements to serve as a juror?
Must be aged
18
to
75
, a citizen of the UK or Commonwealth, and have resided in the UK for five years
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Who is disqualified from serving on a jury?
Those on
bail
or who have received a
prison sentence
of five years or more
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What grounds can someone be exempted from jury service?
Medical reasons
or prior commitments like a
paid holiday
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What are the strengths of the jury system?
Jury equity allows jurors to decide based on
fairness
rather than strict
law
Ordinary
members of the public make the legal system more open
Juries can provide a check on
state
power
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What is an example of jury equity?
The
acquittal
of Clive Ponting during the
Falklands War trial
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What was the outcome of the trial of Kay Gilderdale?
She was
acquitted
by the
jury
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How do juries contribute to the perception of justice?
Juries make the legal system more
open
Ordinary
citizens decide outcomes, enhancing public
confidence
Judges explain
legal
points to
jurors
, aiding understanding
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Why are jury trials considered fairer by many people?
Because jurors are
peers
and may cancel out individual
prejudices
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What is the significance of
jury secrecy
?
It protects jurors from outside pressures and allows for
jury equity
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What are the weaknesses of the jury system?
Potential for
racial
bias among jurors
Influence of
media
coverage on jury decisions
Difficulty in understanding
complex
evidence in fraud trials
Jury
tampering
risks
High
acquittal
rates leading to criticism
Possibility of
perverse
decisions
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What case highlighted concerns about racial bias in juries?
Sander v
United Kingdom
(
2000
)
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What was the outcome of the case R v Taylor and Taylor?
The Court of
Appeal
quashed the conviction due to
prejudicial
media coverage
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What did Cheryl Thomas's study reveal about jurors' understanding of legal directions?
More than
two-thirds
did
not
fully understand the judge's directions
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What does jury tampering involve?
Attempts to
pervert
the course of justice by bribing or
intimidating
jurors
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What does section 44 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 allow?
The
prosecution
to apply for
trial
by a judge alone in cases of
jury tampering
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What was the first judge-only trial in the UK?
R v
Twomey
and others in
2009
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Why are high acquittal rates criticized in the jury system?
Because juries are seen as
acquitting
too many
defendants
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What is a
perverse decision in the context of jury verdicts
?
A verdict that goes against the facts of the case due to jurors ignoring the law
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What does the secrecy of jury deliberations prevent?
It prevents the
disclosure
of jurors' reasoning behind their
verdicts
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What was the ruling of the Law Lords in 2004 regarding jury discussions?
They ruled that they could not
inquire
into discussions in a
jury
room
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What was the outcome of R v Mirza regarding the jury's decision?
Mirza was convicted on a
10-2
majority
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What was the amount of criminal damage caused by the defendants in the case of Kronlid and others in
1996
?
£1.5 million
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Why did the defendants in the Kronlid case plead not guilty?
They claimed they were preventing the warplane from being sent to Indonesia for use against
East Timor.
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What does the secrecy of the jury room imply for verdict appeals?
It means that appeals based on jury deliberations are generally
unsuccessful.
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In which year did the Law Lords rule they could not inquire into jury room discussions?
2004
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What was the issue in the case of R v Mirza regarding jury bias?
A juror claimed that other jurors had made
negative
comments about the use of an interpreter, indicating
racial
bias.
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What did the juror in R v Connor and Rollock reveal about the jury's decision-making process?
She stated that jurors decided to
convict
both defendants to teach them a
lesson
despite
disagreements
on who
stabbed
the victim.
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What does the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 prohibit jurors from doing?
It makes it an
offence
for jurors to search the
internet
for case-related information.
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What percentage of jurors admitted to looking up information on the internet about their cases?
12%
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What were the consequences for Dr. Theodora Dulles and Lionel Tweed for researching cases online?
They were jailed for their actions, leading to a dismissal of the
jury
in
Dulles'
case.
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What is the role of magistrates in the criminal justice system?
Unpaid
,
part-time
volunteers from the local community
Try
less serious
cases (e.g., motoring offences, shoplifting)
Can
impose fines
or
short prison sentences
Assistants
are
legally
qualified clerks
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How many magistrates are there in the UK?
Approximately
13,000
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