Jury Nullification

Jury nullification is when a jury acquits a defendant who it believes is guilty of the crime he is charged (Hickey, 2010. p. 370). This is because the jury chose to ignore the facts of the case and the judge instructions, and based his or her decision on personal opinion. If we are going to allow jury nullification we may as well not take up the tax-payer’s money to even take it to trial. Nullification – The act of making a law null and void (nullifying). For example, during prohibition, many juries found defendants innocent, even when the state had proven its case, because they did not think the law should exist. State legislatures also have nullified federal laws within their borders, creating a nullification crisis for the federal government, a largely unsettled area of law in the United States. (Falcone, Pg. 182) Exclusionary rule - A court-generated rule holding that evidence obtained in violation of the protections granted by the United States Constitution becomes tainted and, thus, inadmissible at trial. Frist developed in Weeks v United States, 232 U.S. 383, 34 S.Ct. 341, 58 L. Ed.652 (1914). It applied only to federal officers involved in federal action. Later, through a number of appellate cases, the rule was expanded and made applicable to the states, through the Fourteen Amendment. (Falcone, Pg. 86)

It is obvious that significant improvements have been made in the way that the criminal justice system deals with Blacks during the history of the United States. Blacks have not always been afforded a right to trial, not to mention a fair one. Additionally, for years, Blacks were unable to serve on juries, clearly affecting the way both Blacks and whites were tried. Much of this improvement has been achieved through vari...

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Davenport, A., U. (2006) Basic Criminal Law: The U.S. Constitution, Procedure, and Crimes. Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River: New Jersey

Falcone, D. (2005) Dictionary of American Criminal Justice, Criminology, & Criminal Law. Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey

Hickey, T. (2010). Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Crime and Criminology 9th Ed. McGraw-Hill Publishing, New York, NY

United States vs. Thomas. 1997 U.S. App. LEXIS 11852. Retrieved on December 31, 2011 from www.levellers.org/jrp/orig/jrp.usvttoc.htm

US Legal, (2011). Jury Nullification Law & Legal Definition. Retrieved on January 6, 2012 from website http://definitions.uslegal.com/j/jury-nullification/