Windsor Canada Jurors to Receive $120/Day Stipend
According to the Windsor Star, jury selection is proceeding slowly in a murder trial involving up to 100 witness and expected to last months. Recognizing the burden a lengthy trial can place upon jurors, Superior Court Justice Maria Carroccia told venire members they would be compensated at a rate of $120 per business day “whether we are sitting or not.” We know of no American court that can make that sales pitch.
Wisconsin Court and Newspaper Address Scofflaw Jurors
The Daily Jefferson County Union reports on the local court’s problematic jury-service no-show rate and efforts underway to make scofflaws accountable and responsive to summonses.
Illinois Trial Judge Underlines the Importance of “Appearances”
Retired Illinois judge Raymond J. McKoski gave the ABA Journal his 25-year experienced perspective on what lawyers should do to relate better with jurors during jury selection (or deselection). He believes the ingredients for successful lawyer/juror rapport are “(1) how appreciative, patient, and sympathetic counsel appeared to be; and (2) how good of a listener counsel appeared to be.”
Defendant’s Conduct Shocks Judge and Causes Mistrial
The Asbury Park Press reports that former youth tennis instructor Terry Kuo, charged with kidnapping and sexual assault, did something during jury selection that New Jersey Superior Court Judge Joseph W. Oxley found to be a deliberate ploy never seen in his 40-year legal career. "Let the record reflect that the defendant just urinated in the middle of my courtroom. He did it in front of the jury,” Oxley said, after he cleared the courtroom of jurors.
Colorado Journalist Creates New Term: “Jury Vigilantefication”
Journalist Ralph Josephson writes for the Times-Callin Colorado. He recently suggested that jury nullification in police brutality cases could easily be called jury “vigilantefication”—juries on behalf of the community express anger and send a clear message to law enforcement that police brutality must end.