Jury Duty-Question

[Albuquerque101]

Originally Posted by RedRage

I've never served on jury duty but are you allowed to come up with a judgment or is it just to figure out if you vote guilty or not?

Juries are given a set of questions to answer.

If the jury decides the fate of the defendant, why is it that different murderers each get different sentences for doing virtually the same thing?

Juries decide guilt or innocence. Judges decide sentences based on a variety of factors (differing state laws, the defendant's criminal background, other aggrevating or mitigating factors, etc.)

[matt30]

Originally Posted by Albuquerque101

Juries decide guilt or innocence. Judges decide sentences based on a variety of factors (differing state laws, the defendant's criminal background, other aggrevating or mitigating factors, etc.)

It depends on the state. Some juries have more power to influence sentencing than others. But generally, the judge sentences offenders in criminal cases .

Civil juries have great flexibility in assigning the amount of damages.