Overview
While the justice system in the United States is one of the best in the world, it still has several shortcomings. The system is clogged up by large amounts of non-violent offenses, jury’s are uninformed, and judges often have power than can easily be abused. This campaign is to support a fully informed jury. Additionally, we’d like to encourage civil discourse of our justice system and how we can improve it.
We believe that our judges as well as our police and politicians need to be accountable, transparent, and just in all their proceedings.
Jury Nullification
Jury nullification is when a jury reaches a verdict that is contrary to either the weight of evidence and/or contrary to the letter of the law. The jury system largely exists because it was thought to be less easily corrupted. Hopefully, this would result in just verdicts. In a typical jury trial, jurors are typically instructed to strictly follow the facts and are rarely informed of their legal ability to rule against the law despite evidence.
The main reason behind actively practicing jury nullification is to fight against unjust laws. In a way, jury nullification in a check on the judicial branch of government. It enables the people to rule against laws they view as unjust or wrong. It can be a way to protect our society from tyranny and abuse of power.
When practicing jury nullification, there are a few things you should expect. Firstly, expect no mention of your right to nullify by the judge. If you are notified of your right to nullify, this is very rare. Judges typically give the impression that the jury must use only the facts and cannot question the law at all. If you disagree with the law you should refuse to convict the defendant; this is jury nullification. This is your ability to judge not only the case in question but to also judge the law itself. Oftentimes, actively practicing jury nullification results in a hung jury. In the rare case that you can convince your fellow jurors to vote against convicting because of the law, such a ruling would only acquit the person being tried in the current case and would not actually change the law. The value of jury nullification is that it allows juries to challenge unjust laws. The idea behind this activism is that if enough juries express disagreement with a law they believe to be unjust, support will eventually build against the law resulting in it’s abolition.
Law
Jury nullification does have legal precedent. It is legally within a juries power to nullify even when discouraged by fellow jurors or the judge. By law, jurors cannot be punished for their verdict; additionally, double jeopardy holds that defendants cannot be retried after being acquitted. This two precedents allow one to practice jury nullification knowing that they legally can do so without reprimand and that the defendant can be dismissed of charges.
History
It has been used to combat unjust laws, such as laws that were pro-slavery, pro-alcohol prohibition, and pro-discrimination. In fact, many scholars believe that jury nullification played a strong roll in repealing the 18th Amendment – the alcohol prohibition. Forms of nullification were used by the American revolutionists when they refused to convict defendants under English Law. There have been cases where juries refuse to convict because of injustice within the law or injustice where the law is applied to a particular court case. In California in 2010, at least one jury refused to convict a man for possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Flyers & Outreach
The flyers below were made in-house unless otherwise noted. They are free to use. In fact, we encourage their use both on the web and locally. We encourage activists to get involved in their area, particularly by sharing these educational flyers outside courthouses to potential jurors.
Click the above flyer for the full printable image. You may need to scale it to custom dimensions to fit the full page.
Check back soon for nullification flyers directed specifically at the marijuana and drug prohibition.
Resources
FIJA.org – Fully Informed Jury Association
Erowid: Jury Rights and Jury Nullification
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