Jury selection can be a pivotal part of your criminal defense. This is because jurors come to the table with their own points-of-view and lived experiences, which could shade the way they view your case. Therefore, it’s important that you know how to successfully navigate the jury selection process if you want to protect your interests as fully as possible.
For cause challenges
As the parties and the court begin to whittle down the jury pool, the attorneys are allowed to ask potential jurors about their backgrounds, their existing knowledge of the case, and their biases. If an attorney for either side then sees a reason to request dismissal of the potential juror, then he or she may do so after specifying why the request is being made. These justifications often include bias. The parties generally are not limited to the number of for cause challenges that they can make, so you need to know how to draw out biases in potential jurors if you want a fair jury to be selected.
Peremptory challenges
Outside of for cause challenges, each side has a limited number of peremptory challenges. Here, you can remove a potential juror for any reason you like, so long as it is not based on race or class. You don’t have to give a reason for the potential juror’s removal here, which gives you the opportunity to ensure that you’re getting a fair jury by removing those that you think would decide against you.
Navigating the intricacies of your criminal defense
Jury selection is just one of the many aspects of your criminal defense that can have a profound impact on the outcome of your case. So, if you want to learn more about the legal intricacies involved in defending against white collar crime allegations, then now may be the time to discuss your case with an experienced criminal defense team of your choosing.