15 March 2011

Greens pushing for more jury trials

| johnboy
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The Greens’ Shane Rattenbury is slowing down Simon Corbell’s rush to get more trials out of the Supreme Court and into the harder hearted Magistrates.

“The Greens are concerned that the Government’s model for sending cases to the Magistrates Court is too blunt and some serious cases may end up not having access to a jury trial.

“Jury trials for serious cases are deeply rooted in our legal system and we shouldn’t give them up lightly.

“Our proposal involves a pre-trial assessment of seriousness of the charges to determine whether the case can be heard summarily by a Magistrate or if a jury trial in the Supreme Court is warranted. This more nuanced system will help address the court backlog while ensuring we retain jury trials for more serious cases.

Oh great, another level of assessment.

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peterh said :

saying that “its about time” means that you probably haven’t been on one. Once you have, you may find that the perspective you had has changed.

I’ve only got second hand knowledge of the process through my fiance, but based on what she told me after her recent service I’m in 100% agreement with your post.

I have completed my time on a jury panel, and it is a far more difficult duty than I imagined. The number of jury trials may increase the numbers of convictions, but, with a jury trial, there cannot be a shadow of reasonable doubt. Emotion cannot be in play in a decision. the facts are all that you can decide upon, and it is very hard to divorce emotion when you are trying to reach the decision – especially if you feel certain that the accused is guilty.

saying that “its about time” means that you probably haven’t been on one. Once you have, you may find that the perspective you had has changed.

Can someone with a legal background describe what this is all about and what the pros and cons are of both systems?

I’m all for jury trials, it’s about time!

Jury trials at the Supreme Court?! Any crook who knows his business (defence lawyers included) know too well that you don’t opt for a jury trial when you can have a Judge only trial in the ACT.

Can’t the Greens just stick to planting trees, and leave pragmatic decisions to practical people?

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