Why have courts attempted to write jury instructions in more common terms?

What will be an ideal response?


One of the criticisms of jury instructions is that, because they are crafted by lawyers, they are full of
legal jargon and therefore are difficult for laypeople to understand. This issue—the degree to which
jurors are able to comprehend the instructions on the law given by the judge—has been the subject of a
considerable amount of research. Most of this research concluded that jurors do not understand the
judge’s instructions (Steele & Thornburg, 1988). There also has been research designed to determine if
juror comprehension is affected by the language used in the jury instruction. One study found higher
comprehension rates for instructions that were written in clear, nontechnical language (Elwork, Alfini, &
Sales, 1987). The results of this research prompted many jurisdictions to adopt patterned jury
instructions—that is, standard instructions that apply in most criminal cases. Typically, the judge consults
the prosecutor and the defense attorney about the instructions that will be given and allows each side to
suggest supplemental instructions. This is usually done during a charging conference. If the judge rejects
one of the defense attorney’s proffered instructions, the attorney will object to the judge’s decision, which
preserves the issue for appeal.

Criminal Justice

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The difference principle states that although primary goods and services are to be distributed ______, there is nevertheless a way in which certain inequalities can be considered just.

What will be an ideal response?

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Of the three categories of WMDs, nuclear weapons constitute the greatest threat, why?

What will be an ideal response?

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High levels of testosterone have numerous consequences. Which of the following is NOT one of those consequences?

a. lower sensitivity to pain b. enhanced seeking of sensory stimulation c. an aversion to risk-taking behaviors d. right-hemisphere shift in brain dominance

Criminal Justice

A person, in fun, points what they consider to be an unloaded handgun towards his wife and pulls the trigger. As it so happens, the gun was actually loaded, and goes off with the bullet barely missing her. What would be the best crime to charge the person with?

A. no crime, it was an accident B. Assault C. Aggravated Assault since a gun was involved D. Deadly Conduct

Criminal Justice