THE JURY

 Discuss eligibility to serve on a jury

 Factors which may disqualify persons from jury service
 Advantages and disadvantages of the jury system.

The jury system of the Commonwealth Caribbean territories, like that of England whence it
was received, is founded on the old belief that a man must be tried by his peers consisting of 12
reasonable men (and women) who are called jurors. Following arraignment and a plea of not
guilty the accused is put in charge of the panel of jurors. The relevant Jury/Juries Act of the
various jurisdiction provides for the selection of jurors:

‘The jury system of trial is an essential element of the democratic process. It attempts to
secure fairness in the justice system.’ In the Commonwealth Caribbean the jury is used in both
civil (for example, in actions for libel) and criminal matters. The modern jury is composed of a
minimum of 12 jurors, in state offences, for example, murder and treason, while in some criminal
matters it may be 9.

Challenges to the jury fall into the following two categories:

• Challenge for cause, and

• Peremptory challenge
Peremptory challenge

With respect to a peremptory challenge, a reason is not necessary but a good reason, such as
suspicion of bias, must be advanced before one may challenge or question a juror for cause. A
limited number of peremptory challenges are allowed for each matter. ‘peremptory’ means that
jurors may be challenged without any reason given by the party making the challenge
A jury member may be discharged for any of the following reasons:

 Drunkenness
 Illness
 Lateness
 Accepting bribes.

Discharge of the entire panel of jurors

The trial judge may discharge the whole jury panel under any one or a combination of the
following circumstances:

 If inadmissible or prejudicial evidence is accidentally given

 If a juror is seen speaking to a relative of the other side and that juror has had enough
opportunity to corrupt the whole panel.

Size of the Jury

There is no special size for a jury nor for the number of jurors required to constitute a
legitimate verdict. However, for capital offences, the number is usually 12 jurors. For non-capital
offences, the magic number of 12 is often dispensed with and a lower number, such as nine, may
be more acceptable. The St. Vincent Legislation gives illustration: by SS 12 and 13 of the Jury
Ordinance 1938, provision is made for different modes of trial by jury for capital and non-capital
offences:

The merits of trial by Jury

 Determining the difference between fact and law

 Incompetence and ignorance:

 Perception and emotional considerations

Problems with the representativeness of the jury

Criticisms can also be levelled at the composition of the jury in several respects. Often, the jury
is not as representative of society as is desired. The very selection process of the system comes
into question in this regard.

According to Lord Devlin: ‘Jurors are predominantly male, middle aged, middle minded and
middle class.’

The experience in the Caribbean has been that jurors often come from a lower income bracket
than that of their English counterparts. This is due to partly to the very early abolition of property
qualifications.

Questions of race and ethnicity

Those who advocate a racially stratified jury argue that certain accused are not able to obtain real
justice because of the racial prejudice of jurors of different ethnic background.

Gender equality

Gender inequality as regards the composition of the jury also defeats the notion of peerage and
representative injuries. Studies show that women jurors are underrepresented in the Caribbean.