Jury decision making study

[Dr Cross]

Jury Instructions

The following are the instructions from the judge that explain the relevant laws in this case.

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury:

It is my duty to instruct you in the law that applies to this case and you must follow the law as I state it to you. As jurors it is your exclusive duty to decide all questions of fact submitted to you and for that purpose to determine the effect and value of the evidence. You must not be influenced by sympathy, prejudice or passion. The information in this case is only an accusation against the defendant that informs the defendant of the charge. You are not to consider the filing of the information or its contents as proof of the matter charged.

The evidence you are to consider consists of the testimony of the victim and the exhibits admitted into evidence. You are the sole judges of the credibility of the victim and of what weight is to be given the testimony of it. In considering the testimony of any witness, you may take into account the opportunity and ability of the witness to observe, the witnesses' memory, any interest, bias or prejudice the witness may have, the reasonableness of the testimony of the witness considered in light of all the evidence, and any other factors that bear on believability and weight.

The Court has admitted physical evidence, such as DNA, blood, hair fiber evidence, and experts' opinions concerning the analysis of such physical evidence. You are the sole judges of whether any such evidence has a tendency and reason to prove any fact at issue in this case. You should carefully review and consider all the circumstances surrounding each item of evidence, including, but not limited to, its discovery, collection, storage and analysis. If you find any item of evidence does not have a tendency and reason to prove any element of the crime's charge or the identity of perpetrator of such of the crime's charge, you must disregard such evidence.

Now I want to define the elements of the charge against the defendant. The State has charged the defendant with sexual assault. A person who subjects another person to sexual penetration against the victim’s will is guilty of sexual assault. Sexual penetration means any intrusion, however slight, of any part of a person’s body, including sexual intercourse in its ordinary meaning.

A defendant is presumed innocent. This presumption continues throughout the entire trial unless you find it has been overcome by the evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt. The State has the burden of proving each element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.

A reasonable doubt is one for which a reason exists. A reasonable doubt is such a doubt as would exist in the mind of a reasonable person after fully, fairly and carefully considering all of the evidence or lack of evidence. Doubt, to be reasonable, must be actual and substantial, not mere possibility or speculation.

If the State has failed to prove the elements of the charged offenses beyond a reasonable doubt, it is your duty to find the defendant not guilty.

Jury Verdict Form

1. At this point, what would you estimate to be the probability that Steven Murphy sexually assaulted Linda Byrne? Please choose a number between 0% and 100%, where 0% means, "absolutely sure he did not do it" and 100% means, absolutely sure he did do it": _________%

2. As a juror, you are instructed to consider all of the evidence in this case carefully. You are to find against Steven Murphy only if the evidence convinces you "beyond a reasonable doubt" that Steven Murphy is guilty of this crime.

What verdict would you return? (Please mark an "X" beside your response below):

________ Not Guilty ___________ Guilty


3. How confident are you in your verdict choice?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Not at all Somewhat Extremely
confident confident


4. In a sentence or two, please describe the main reason why you chose the verdict that you did.






5. How accurate was the testing done on the crime scene evidence?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Not at all Somewhat Extremely
accurate accurate

6. How reliable was the laboratory testing done on the crime scene evidence?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Not at all Somewhat Extremely
reliable reliable

7. How effective were the police at following the appropriate procedure for transporting evidence?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Not at all Somewhat Extremely
reliable reliable

8. How reliable was the victim’s identification?

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Not at all Somewhat Extremely
reliable reliable
9. Did the expert criminalist say the DNA sample on the victim matched the defendant’s DNA?
Yes No

10. Did the expert criminalist say the blood type sample on the victim matched the defendant’s blood type?
Yes No

11. Did the expert criminalist say the hair fiber sample on the victim matched the defendant’s hair fiber?
Yes No

12. Did the expert criminalist say the fingerprint sample on the victim matched the defendant’s fingerprints?
Yes No

13. Was the victim ultimately able to identify her attacker?
Yes No

Please Tell Us About Yourself
Gender:
Male Female


Age ________________


Thank You for Your Participation