The Legislative Role of Juries

Jury nullification: The impact of judicial instructions, arguments, and challenges on jury decision making.

“…radical instructions departed significantly from base-line outcomes and functioning. Juries operating under the radical instructions gave fewer guilty verdicts in a case in which they felt punishment was less warranted, and, not unlike the juries Levine (1984Levine ( , 1983 surveyed, gave more guilty verdicts in a case in which they were unsympathetic to the defendant and the nature of the crime.…”

“…Whatever the views of the jurists, it is clear that jury decision making often reflects current public opinion. Levine (1984) has reported that juries may act as if they were a microcosmic legislature by assessing the policies the law conveys at a particular time in history. The evidence reveals that juries convicted at a higher rate in draft evasion cases when a war was popular than when the war (Vietnam and Korea) lost public support.…”

What social science teaches us about the jury instruction process.

“…Nullification is most likely to occur “in cases involving social change” (Abbott, Hall, & Linville, 1993, p. 46) when a jury is forced to decide between what is legally correct and what is morally correct (Kadish & Kadish, 1971; Levine, 1984). Indeed, Kalvin and Zeisel (1966) reported that in the 22% of the cases where juries' verdicts conflicted with judges' expectations of a trial outcome, the general consensus among the judges was that roughly two thirds of the disagreements could be attributed to jurors' values.…”

“…For example, nullification frequently occurred centuries ago in England where the punishment for the most trivial of crimes was death, and has occurred in this country since colonial times (Horowitz, 1985; for a historical review, see Weinstein, 1993). More recently, it has occurred in cases involving conscience such as euthanasia (Becker, Hildum, & Bateman, 1965, as cited in Abbott et al, 1993), and refusing the military draft (Becker, 1980; Kadish & Kadish, 1971; Levine, 1984). Levine (1984) found that the acquittal rates for defendants in draft evasion cases in the Korean and Vietnam wars was negatively correlated with public support of military involvement.…”

“…More recently, it has occurred in cases involving conscience such as euthanasia (Becker, Hildum, & Bateman, 1965, as cited in Abbott et al, 1993), and refusing the military draft (Becker, 1980; Kadish & Kadish, 1971; Levine, 1984). Levine (1984) found that the acquittal rates for defendants in draft evasion cases in the Korean and Vietnam wars was negatively correlated with public support of military involvement. Conviction rates were high in the early part of the war “as juries capture the `rally-round-the-flag' spirit that usually prevails when nations go to war” (p. 615).…”