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Interaction Between the Race of the Defendant and That of Jurors in Determining Verdicts

NCJ Number
73061
Journal
Law and Psychology Review Volume: 5 Dated: (Fall 1979) Pages: 103-111
Author(s)
J L Bernard
Date Published
1979
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This study of interaction between the race of the defendant and that of jurors in determining verdicts emphasizes the need for adequate simulation in designing jury research; the study found that the interaction of the race of the defendant with the race of the jurors was significant.
Abstract
The 'jurors' in the study were undergraduates enrolled in psychology courses. They were assigned to two sets of five juries at random, except for stratification by race. In each set, the five juries had the following racial compositions: 100 percent black, 75 percent black and 25 percent white, 50 percent black and 50 percent white, 25 percent black and 75 percent white, and 100 percent white. Panels of jurors were shown a videotaped presentation of a simulated trial and asked to deliberate and arrive at a unanimous verdict. The case used deliberately equivocal testimony. Since one thrust of the research was the effect of subsequent group interaction on initial individual ballots to final ballots, disregarding the race of jurors. The effects of race were submitted to a Chi Square analysis. Findings revealed a pronounced tendency for jurors to shift in the direction of a 'not guilty' vote as a result of group interaction. There was, however, one exception: white jurors who found the black defendant 'guilty' on their first ballot tended to hold to this decision and not to be influenced by group discussion. Furthermore, blacks as a whole were much more likely than whites to reach a 'not guilty' verdict, regardless of the race of the defendant. The research illustrates that the effect of group decisionmaking in jury research concern the use of college students, who rarely serve as jurors, and the fact that the case involved assault on a white police officer. Footnotes with references are included.

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