If you could fly or be invisible, which would you choose? This is a college entrance question that is supposed to indicate who is truthful and who is suited for law school. Just kidding.
Nevertheless, lawyers do ask questions of potential jurors to determine bias. This is a process called voir dire, from the French phrase meaning, “to tell the truth,” and is more a process of rejection rather than selection.
For an example, a lawyer may ask if a potential juror likes crossword puzzles to find out if he or she is well-read and has a good vocabulary. Attorneys want to know ahead of time who on the jury is likely to be sympathetic to the defendant and who is likely to side with the plaintiff.
In England, jury selection is a very
simple process. The judge asks twelve
prospective jurors if they can give “a fair hearing to both the crown and the
defense?” In this country, however, jury
selection can take nearly as long as the trial in some cases.Jury
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