Jury Will Be Sequestered In Zimmerman Trial, A High-Profile Case That Sparked National Outrage

Reep added, "These women of course are not criminals, yet we took them from their families. While we did not say this then, now it is clear, half of the country is going to very vocally find fault with your dedicated effort. A Bloomin Onion at Outback would not adequately reimburse these women for the bitterness" some will level at them for their jury service.

"When a jury is sequestered for a significant amount of time, like in this case, a judge has to be mindful of how their isolation from the outside world could affect them and could potentially affect their ability to be fair and impartial," Parker said.

Jury Will Be Sequestered In Zimmerman Trial

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During the first four days of jury selection, lawyers had been asking potential jurors whether being sequestered would be a hardship on them. Most said they could serve on the jury but cited family, work and school responsibilities as concerns.

"Sequestration of a jury is rare but it is crucial in a case that is high-profile such as this," said Elizabeth Parker, a Florida criminal defense attorney and former assistant state prosecutor. "This was an important ruling for both the state and defense to protect the integrity of the criminal justice process, to protect the privacy of the jurors and to ensure that the jurors decide the case based upon information that they learned during the trial."

As of Tuesday, 41 potential jurors had been dismissed in George Zimmerman's second-degree murder trial. No ruling had been issued on whether jurors will be sequestered. But as jury selection continues, attorneys are asking prospective jurors how much of a hardship that would be.

When a jury is sequestered, the judge places them beyond the public reach. When this is ordered, the jury is typically housed in a hotel near the courthouse. The jurors are not permitted to watch television or read the news. They have only limited contact with their family and are under supervision around the clock.

To truly isolate a jury, you need to be able to control its members access to everything, including television, films, news sources, cell phones, etc. Jury members even have their mail monitored and are prohibited from discussing the trial with one another.

It is possible for jury sequestration to work if it is handled properly by the judge presiding over the case. For example, the jury in the George Zimmerman trial was sequestered for 22 days. However, they were allowed to go bowling, get manicures, see movies, and go shopping as a group. These outings helped the jurors keep their sanity, though they stopped once the time came for the jury to deliberate on a verdict.

So does jury sequestration work? It all depends on the jury members. Even in cases where the justice system treats them right, sequestration can begin to feel like a prison. It is possible, perhaps, that some jurors become more sympathetic to the men and women on trial, because they begin to understand what life will be like for the incarcerated. On the other hand, they may make rash decisions simply to get out of the experience themselves. This is why sequestering a jury is always a risk, and why it is a rarely-used option.

At Barry, Barall, Taylor & Levesque, LLC, we understand that a high-profile trial creates a lot of anxiety for jurors and defendants alike. Our criminal defense attorneys in Hartford and Manchester will review your case and help you fight the charges levied against you. We will also work hard to build a jury that can help resolve the trial in a favorable outcome for you. Call us today at 860-649-4400 or complete our contact form to schedule a consultation today.

Ben Crump, a lawyer for the Martin family, said, \"We believe as long as this jury is fair and impartial, with the evidence that they have, they will return a verdict holding George Zimmerman accountable.\"

\"With the makeup of this jury, the issue of whether every American can get equal justice no matter who serves on this jury panel will be answered. And we expect the jury pool to do its duty and follow the law,\" he said.

In an indication of the intense emotions surrounding the case, the judge said she will delay the announcement of the jury's eventual verdict by two hours to give police ample time to prepare for security.

SANFORD - The six jurors and four alternates eventually picked to hear the second-degree murder case of neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman will be sequestered for the two to four weeks the trial will last, the judge presiding over the case said for the first time Thursday.

During the first four days of jury selection, attorneys have asked potential jurors about the hardships they would face if they were kept away from their families during the trial. Defense attorney Don West explained to one candidate that if picked she would have limited contact with her family, would be monitored by court security outside the courtroom and would have to live in a hotel for the duration.

Although most of the coverage of the George Zimmerman trial has, understandably, focused on the defendant and victim, we should not forget the toll on the jurors. As I have written before, jury service can be quite stressful for jurors, and that is especially true in long trials with serious charges, complex evidence, and emotional testimony. All of these factors are compounded by sequestration, as in the Zimmerman case.

Am I saying that we should never sequester juries? No. Am I saying that the state of Florida should not have sequestered this particular jury? No, not even that. But I do want to make two points: First, sequestration is costly and difficult. The Zimmerman jurors had a tough case to begin with, and sequestration likely made the whole experience significantly harder and more stressful. They deserve our appreciation, whether we agree with their verdict or not. Second, unless we change our standards for when to use the practice, sequestration is only going to become more common. Because we live in an age of rapid digital communication, there is more, and more widespread, coverage of cases that would previously have remained local; and potential and sitting jurors can more easily access that information. There are already cases in which jurors have been discharged or sanctioned for using social media during trial.

"The judge in the George Zimmerman murder trial issued key rulings this morning, blocking the defense from putting on testimony about 17-year-old Trayvon Martin's text messages or using a computer animated recreation of the teen's shooting as evidence. The defense will be allowed to use the animation as a demonstrative aid, likely during closing arguments. But it will not go back with the jurors as evidence when they deliberate."

"On the other hand, it's a pretty good manslaughter case. And the jury will have the option, almost certainly, of convicting him of that. Because for manslaughter, all that has to be proved is that Mr. Zimmerman was reckless, that he's kind of a loose canon. And I think we've seen plenty of evidence of that."

A jury of six women, five of them white and the other a minority, was picked Thursday to decide the second-degree murder trial of George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer who says he fatally shot Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager, in self-defense.

One juror had a prior arrest, but she said it was disposed of and she thought she was treated fairly. Two jurors have guns in their homes. All of their names have been kept confidential and the panel will be sequestered for the trial.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys chose the panel of six jurors after almost two weeks of jury selection. In Florida, 12 jurors are required only for criminal trials involving capital cases, when the death penalty is being considered.

Although it is rare, judges sometimes choose to sequester, or isolate, a jury in high-profile criminal trials. Basically, the jurors are kept away from other people and outside influences for the duration of the trial. In this article, we will explain jury sequestration and answer common questions about the process, including the advantages and disadvantages of sequestering a jury.

Despite the challenges, jury sequestration does have its benefits. It allows jurors to focus solely on the trial without having to worry about outside influences. This can be especially important in high-profile or complex cases where there is a lot of public interest and media coverage. Jury sequestration can also help prevent jury tampering and ensure that jury members do not feel pressure to conform to the majority opinion.

Jurors are typically sequestered during capital murder cases. In the most recent one, jurors packed for an overnight stay in the trial of Glen Bates, the East Walnut Hills man convicted of killing his 2-year-old daughter. But instead, they returned a verdict after about two hours of deliberations. 2ff7e9595c