If you’ve ever seen a TV show about law before, you’ve more than likely seen a jury sitting on the sidelines watching the entire trial unfold. They see all the evidence presented to them, listen to all the testimony, and are then excused to the jury room for deliberation. What the TV programs often don’t show, however, is how the jury knows what to decide on. Jury deliberations are actually very keenly focused, as the judge provides a verbal and written jury instruction prior to dismissing them for deliberation.
In Florida, there are jury instruction documents for every single kind of case that involves a jury, including criminal, civil, and contract cases. Under the umbrella of criminal law, there are many different instruction documents that each relate to a different aspect of any given case. For instance, there are general instructions that a judge will always read to a jury before and during a trial.
For the most part, defendants will be concerned with the jury instructions for both specific crimes and legal defenses. Each side will put together a proposed version of the instructions prior to the trial for the judge to approve. The final draft of these instructions is read to the jury right before they are excused for deliberation. This will serve as the foundation of the jury’s ruling, so it is important to get it right.
When watching trials on television, many people may get the impression that the verbal instructions are longwinded and the jury won’t remember what they are trying to rule on. While the verbal instructions may indeed take a while to read, the jury is also provided with the written instruction document as well. This document is very cleanly formatted and essentially acts as a checklist for the jury to refer to.
To get a better idea of how jury instructions work exactly, here’s an example. Suppose we have a defendant named Bob who is being charged with first degree felony murder. The victim is named Alice. The state prosecutor alleges that Bob committed an armed robbery of a bank before fleeing the scene with a big bag of money. He was driving recklessly through the streets, mounting the curb on several intersections. Just a mile away from the bank, Alice was walking on the sidewalk and Bob rammed right into her with his car, killing her instantly.
In order to properly instruct the jury, the attorneys for both sides must first find the relevant jury instruction documents. In Florida, these are all available on the Florida Bar’s website. In Bob’s case, the jury will need the instructions for first degree attempted murder. Here is the first portion of the original instructions, without alterations:
To prove the crime of First Degree Felony Murder, the State must prove the following three elements beyond a reasonable doubt:
- (Victim) is dead.
Give 2a, 2b, and/or 2c as applicable.
a. While engaged in the commission of a[n] (felony alleged),
[(defendant)] [(defendant’s) accomplice] caused the death of (victim).
b. While engaged in the attempt to commit a[n] (felony alleged), [(defendant)] [(defendant’s) accomplice] caused the death of (victim).
c. While escaping from the immediate scene after [committing] [attempting to commit] a[n] (felony alleged), [(defendant)] [(defendant’s) accomplice] caused the death of (victim).
Give 3a if defendant was the person who actually killed the deceased.
- a. (Defendant) was the person who actually killed (victim).
Give 3b if defendant was not the person who actually killed the deceased.
b. (Victim) was killed by a person other than (defendant); but both (defendant) and the person who killed (victim) were principals in the commission of (crime alleged).
This text may appear rather confusing, with brackets and parentheses seemingly all over the place. Remember, however, that this is not the final version the jury will see. The instructions are intentionally built in this modular fashion to allow for the attorneys and judge to trim down the text to what is most applicable. Notice that most of the subsections have italics saying to provide a certain section only if applicable.
Prior to Bob’s trial, both sides will go through these instructions and put together a proposed draft that the judge will examine and approve after making sure both sides agree on the text. Given the alleged facts that we know, here is what the proposed version may look like:
To prove the crime of First Degree Felony Murder, the State must prove the following three elements beyond a reasonable doubt:
- Alice is dead.
- While escaping from the immediate scene after committing an armed robbery, Bob caused the death of Alice.
- Bob was the person who actually killed Alice.
When comparing the final version with the original, you can notice several key differences. For one, all the brackets and italics are completely gone, resulting in a clear and shorter document. This is because the attorneys would have gone through all of the options provided by the brackets and carefully chose what would be most applicable to the case at hand. You will notice that subsections 2a, 2b, and 3b are completely cut from the final version. Given the alleged facts, this is for the following reasons: Bob did not allegedly kill Alice during a felony, attempted or otherwise, and the prosecutor alleges that Bob himself, not another person, killed Alice. Given those reasons, it would make no sense to include subsections 2a, 2b and 3b, as they are not relevant and would only confuse the jury.
While the jury instructions may be longer to account for more facts, the instructions you see above are precisely what a real-life jury would see. Their job is made a lot easier because of it; all they need to do is go through the evidence and check off each section if they feel the state prosecutor has sufficiently proven it. If the prosecution successfully proves every single element, then the jury must return a verdict of guilty. Conversely, if they fail to fulfill even one criterion, the defendant must be acquitted.
After that example, you may think it is very cut and dry to decide what sections to include and cut; after all, the facts are the facts, right? For the most part, it can be a simple process. However, there can also often be conflict between the opposing sides as to whether to include a particular section or if a section should be cut. This is particularly prominent when proposing jury instructions for legal defenses. Justified self-defense, for example, has about seven pages worth of optional sections that may or may not apply to a given case. There may be some disagreement between the two sides as to what to include, but this will vary depending on the precise case facts and the attorneys handling the case.
If you are being charged with a crime, it is critical to ensure that you have jury instructions that are drafted correctly and include everything necessary for your case. Call the experienced trial attorneys at Hendry & Parker, P.A., in Dunedin, at 727-2205-5555 today for a free consultation.