Juries In Australia Essay

2264 Words5 Pages

To what extent do Juries represent the community? An analysis of Aboriginal people within Juries in Australia
Introduction

Juries are essential to the fairness of the criminal justice system, as they provide an application of the law at one with community conscience. They are expected to be representative, impartial and also independent to help ensure the fairest outcome within a trial. In Australia, juries are often criticised for being unfair when it comes to the representation and involvement of different minorities. This is mainly an issue concerning Aboriginal people and their absence within juries as they are seen to be disproportionately over-represented in the criminal justice system. The aim of the following …show more content…

Representation is an extremely important and key principal concept guiding jury selection. The notion that the jury should represent the community is the basis from which the jury and the criminal justice system derives its legitimacy (Law Reform Commission of Western Australia, 2010). The aim of selecting a jury which represents the whole community is to involve different backgrounds, knowledge, different perspectives and personal experiences in the jury process. By having different backgrounds prejudices and biases can be prevented. In order to achieve the goal of having a jury which is representative of the whole community, it is vital that all ethnic and social groups within the community should have the right and opportunity to be represented on juries (Law Reform Commission of Western Australia, 2010). As every other citizen, Aboriginal people also share an interest in being able to represent the community through jury service. However, in Australia, ethnic minorities, in this case Aboriginal people, do not share the same rights as other minorities to be tried by juries consisting of members of their ethnic group. The Australian Law Reform Commission stated “The jury ... are white, never Aboriginal, and, with the best will in the world, they find it difficult to act fairly in cases in which …show more content…

Juries in Australia are unfair when it comes to representing and involving different minorities such as Aboriginal people, who are overrepresented and unfairly treated in the criminal justice system (ref.). In order to achieve the most impartial and unbiased outcomes for both offenders and victims, it is vital that juries include the involvement of all ethnic and social groups. If juries within Australia are to act as a symbol of integrity and impartiality by invoking the ideals of fairness and community conscience, then there are changes which need to be made in how juries are selected. There are many recommendations that can be implanted to ensure that Aboriginal people are able to participate within juries. Such recommendations include ensuring that they are on the electoral roles. Another recommendation is to allow individuals who are from rural areas to participate. Another recommendation could be that if individuals do not speak English, they can be provided with a translator. Putting into practice all of these recommendations and changes can allow Aboriginal people to become more involved within the criminal justice system, and in this case serve within juries. Not allowing different ethnic minorities to partake in juries leads to many issues within the criminal

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