Jury System Research Paper
The Jury System: A History
Thomas Jefferson describes the jury as “the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.”( Dialogue on the American Jury: We The People in Action, 1) The purpose of juries is to ensure that no government is able to convict innocent people, or to give unreasonably cruel punishment. Although the juries we see today are very different from the first juries, they have always served the same purpose, to keep things fair for citizens. Who exactly is to thank for the idea of juries? That question may never be definitely answered. However, most people credit King Henry II( ruled England, 1154-1189) with the creation of the first jury. King Henry's jury was made of 12 “free and lawful men” who were put under oath and and tasked with stating who the true owner or heir of a property was. This is vastly considered to be the basis of the modern jury. …show more content…
The rulers of England tried to deny the colonists of their right to trial by jury. This was a major issue for the people of the colonies and was one of the reasons for the American Revolution.(Juries- The Jury System in America.) After the Revolution, many states included the right to trial by jury in their state constitutions. Now, the right to trial by jury in a criminal case is protected by the United States Constitution. This right can be found several places in the Constitution, including the Fifth Amendment. (Juries-The Jury System in America.) Since then, several famous criminal cases in the United States have been determined by juries. One example of this is the Al Capone trial, in which the infamous mobster was convicted, not for murder, but tax evasion. Another more recent example is the Zimmerman trial, during which George Zimmerman was found not guilty of murdering 19 year old Trayvon
Thomas Jefferson describes the jury as “the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution.”( Dialogue on the American Jury: We The People in Action, 1) The purpose of juries is to ensure that no government is able to convict innocent people, or to give unreasonably cruel punishment. Although the juries we see today are very different from the first juries, they have always served the same purpose, to keep things fair for citizens. Who exactly is to thank for the idea of juries? That question may never be definitely answered. However, most people credit King Henry II( ruled England, 1154-1189) with the creation of the first jury. King Henry's jury was made of 12 “free and lawful men” who were put under oath and and tasked with stating who the true owner or heir of a property was. This is vastly considered to be the basis of the modern jury. …show more content…
The rulers of England tried to deny the colonists of their right to trial by jury. This was a major issue for the people of the colonies and was one of the reasons for the American Revolution.(Juries- The Jury System in America.) After the Revolution, many states included the right to trial by jury in their state constitutions. Now, the right to trial by jury in a criminal case is protected by the United States Constitution. This right can be found several places in the Constitution, including the Fifth Amendment. (Juries-The Jury System in America.) Since then, several famous criminal cases in the United States have been determined by juries. One example of this is the Al Capone trial, in which the infamous mobster was convicted, not for murder, but tax evasion. Another more recent example is the Zimmerman trial, during which George Zimmerman was found not guilty of murdering 19 year old Trayvon