NCJ Number
77638
Date Published
1976
Length
12 pages
Annotation
A series of four newspaper articles present findings from interviews with all available judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, and jurors involved in five criminal trials so as to determine their perspectives on the impact of pretrial publicity on trial deliberations.
Abstract
Despite vigorous dissent from a scant minority of those interviewed and some qualified answers from the majority, the consensus of the judges, lawyers, and jurors were as follows: (1) defendants in the five cases received fair trials from unbiased juries; (2) courts should not place any restraints on media presence or reporting; (3) media coverage may present some problems in rare cases, but other factors are more important to a fair trial, including the quality of the courts themselves, law enforcement's recognition of an accused's rights, and the ethics of rival attorneys; (4) a juror's background, experiences, and individual prejudices color his/her impartiality far more than pretrial publicity; (5) while pretrial publicity influences a segment of the public, it is less infectious than many believe, such that 12 jurors can always be found who have no fixed opinion about the case; and (6) conflict between the first and sixth amendments of the Constitution is a concern but probably overemphasized. The conflict can be resolved and a fair trial ensured within the scope of existing judicial machinery if the judge and rival attorneys are competent. (Author abstract modified)