NCJ Number
182531
Date Published
1996
Length
200 pages
Annotation
This manual -- originally developed in 1979 to support the Law Enforcement Assistance Administration's Incentive Program in Juror Usage and Management -- updates and extends the principles and practices published earlier in "A Guide to Juror Usage" and "A Guide to Jury System Management," which provide guidance in conserving juror time, in saving juror and court costs, and in increasing the willingness of citizens to serve as jurors.
Abstract
To provide standards against which each court can assess its jury system management program, 12 elements of a jury system are defined, and most of these elements are assigned a quantitative measure based upon achievable and demonstrated results of efficient jury system administration. The 12 elements are a jury system management plan, source lists, qualification/summoning, exclusions, orientation, term of service, jury use, standard panel sizes, calendar coordination, standby jurors, voir dire, and monitoring and control. A section of the manual is devoted to each of the 12 elements, defining the element, the operations involved, quantitative data related to or controlling the element, and the means of implementing change. The initial plan covers all the other elements; whereas, monitoring and control includes the collection and analysis of operating data to ensure that the system is functioning well. The manual describes in detail the use of the forms and the techniques for analyzing the measures of control. The manual anticipates that each court will evaluate its current operation against the element standards presented in the manual to decide where new techniques are needed in its jury system management program. The values are based on achievable and demonstrated results in courts. Appended example of jury system management plan and forms, a glossary, and a subject index