Reading and Discussing

Task I. Read the following text.

The Role of the Judge during the Trial

The judge's role in the trial, while very important, is a relatively passive one. He or she does not present any evidence or take an active part in the examination of witnesses. The judge is expected to play the part of a neutral, disinterested party whose primary job is to see to it that both sides are allowed to present their cases as fully as possible within the confines of the law.

An important function of the judge during the trial is to charge the jury after the prosecution and defence have rested their cases. Although the jury's job is to weigh and assess the facts of the case, it is the judge who must instruct the jurors about the meaning of the law and how the law is to be applied. They must define for the jurors the crime with which the accused is charged. This may involve giving the jurors a variety of opinions about what kind of verdict to return.

After the instructions are read to the jury (and the counsels for each side given an opportunity to offer objections), the jurors retreat into a deliberation room to decide the fate of the accused [5].

Task II. Mark the following statements as True or False.

1. The judge's role in the trial is very important.

2. The judge takes an active part in the examination of the witnesses.

3. The judge must present evidence.

4. The judge is expected to be impartial and neutral.

5. The most important function of the judge is to instruct the jury.

6. The judge's job is to return a verdict.

7. After the instructions are read the judge retires to the jury room to help the jury to conduct deliberations.

Task III. Read the following text.

The Jury's Decision

The jury deliberates in complete privacy: no outsiders observe or participate in its debate. During its deliberation it may request the clarification of legal questions from the judge, and it may look at items of evidence or selected segments of the case transcript, but it may consult nothing else  no law dictionaries, no legal writings, no opinions from experts. When it has reached a decision by a vote of its members, it returns to the courtroom to announce its verdict. If it has not reached a decision by nightfall, the jurors are sent home with firm instructions neither to discuss the case with others nor read about the case in the newspapers. In very important cases the jury may be sequestered by the judge, which means that its members will spend the night in a local hotel away from the public eye.

If the jury becomes deadlocked and cannot reach a verdict, it may report that fact to the judge. In such an event the judge may insist that the jury continue its effort to reach a verdict, saying something like: “The state and the accused have spent a lot of time and money on the case, and if you can't agree, then another jury just like you folks is going to have to go through the whole thing again”. If the judge is convinced that the jury is in fact hopelessly deadlocked, he or she may dismiss the jury and call for a new trial [5].

Task IV. Choose the alternative to answer the questions on the text.

1. Who can observe the jury deliberations?

1. the reporters

2. the judge

3. no one

2. What legal sources can the jury consult during its deliberations?

1. the case transcript

2. law dictionaries

3. legal writings

3. If the jurors have not reached a decision and are sent home, can they

1. discuss the case with others?

2. read about the case in the newspapers?

3. do neither?

4. If the jury becomes hopelessly deadlocked and cannot reach a verdict, what does the judge do?

1. returns a verdict himself

2. dismisses the jury and calls for a new trial

3. lets the defendant go.