Examining the Effects of the Inclusion of Non-English Speaking Jurors on Jury Verdicts and Juror Experiences
Loading...
Authors
Chavez, Hilda L.
Issue Date
2012
Type
Dissertation
Language
Keywords
attitudes , community survey , jurors , jury duty , non-English speaking , verdicts
Alternative Title
Abstract
There is a substantial proportion of Americans who speak English less than very well,
most of them Latinos. The nation’s increasing linguistic diversity has not yet been fully
embraced by the justice system. In most jurisdictions, citizens who do not speak English
well are excused from serving on juries, although there is an ongoing legal debate about
this practice. New Mexico is presently the only U.S. state in which so-called non-English
speaking (NES) jurors are not routinely excluded; instead, they are provided interpreters
to assist them while they serve on juries. This dissertation addresses to what extent the
presence of NES jurors on trial juries influences trial outcomes (Study 1) and the public’s
acceptance of the practice of including NES jurors (Study 2). Study 1 examined court
records of 177 criminal cases at the Third District Court in Doña Ana County, New
Mexico. Propensity score matching was utilized to compare juries that included NES
jurors with similar juries that did not include any NES jurors. Results of cases involving
Latino defendants (32 matched pairs of juries) revealed no differences in verdicts
between NES juries and non-NES juries. For cases involving Anglo defendants (13
matched pairs of juries), the larger the proportion of Latino jurors there was, the more
likely juries were to acquit Anglo defendants if the juries included NES jurors. Study 2
examined community sentiment toward the inclusion of NES citizens on juries using a
survey of 304 residents of Doña Ana County, New Mexico who had recently completed
their jury service. Results revealed a lukewarm evaluation of New Mexico’s practice of
including NES jurors. Although Latinos (n = 106) generally had more favorable attitudes
toward the practice compared to non-Latinos (n = 184), support for English-only policies
ii
was the strongest predictor of less support for the practice among all respondents. For
Latinos, being more proficient in Spanish and less acculturated was associated with more
support. Non-Latinos who previously served on a jury with an NES juror were more
supportive of the practice. For both Anglo and Latino respondents, the perceived high
Latino vitality in the community was linked to rejection of the practice. In the entire
sample, having served with an NES juror was associated with more positive feelings
toward future jury service. The discussion focuses on implications of these findings for
intergroup relations in the U.S. as well as recommendations for American courts.
Description
Citation
Publisher
License
In Copyright(All Rights Reserved)