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Voir
Dire and Jury Selection
ADDRESSING
THE MYTHS OF VOIR DIRE (continued)
In support of
the desire to indoctrinate instead of listen, a myth has been circulating
that jurors do not want to talk in voir dire, or they will be biased
negatively toward those who ask too many personal questions. In
my experience, I have found this to be untrue. I believe that given
a choice, many jurors do want to know about the case. Of course,
they would also rather be involved in a conversation than a lecture.
Many people
love to talk, especially about themselves. Some people actually
feel important when asked what they believe, especially when their
responses are actually listened to with interest and respect. They
realize attorneys have to ask particular questions and, given the
best questions, they will try to cooperate with counsel.
Most people,
however, will not want to talk if not asked honest, open questions.
They know when they are being asked indoctrinating questions, and
they take this opportunity to check out of the process because the
lawyers do not seem to care what they think, regardless of what
was said in the beginning. Jurors know when they are being led to
the "right" answer, and other jurors watching this exchange
will likely hold back on their own answers as a result. In short,
jurors will let attorneys win the battle, but the war will be decided
in deliberations.
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