Free Essay: Jury Consultants in the Casey Anthony Case

Most criminal cases do not involve the use of jury consultants. However, there exists a jury consultancy industry whose sole purpose is to help the defense to select the jury that will best suit their defense motion. The Casey Anthony case was tried in Orange County while the jury was chosen from Pinellas County. The move was arrived at after intense deliberations and agreement that the jury from Pinellas County would be least biased and likely to rule in favor of the defense.

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Jury consultants in the case were responsible for finding a jury that showed no biases in the murder trial. However, the Case Anthony case was heavily popularized both in social and mainstream media and thus virtually all jury-pools knew about the case. Jury consultants often comprise professionals who can read body language and profile members of a jury to identify possibilities of deception when they claim that they will offer fair and impartial hearing (Speegle, 2012). Although there does not exist a perfect jury, jury consultants conduct a mainly scientific exercise. Experts and consultants collect and analyze data on jurors and grades them based on factors such as marital status, age, ethnicity, and occupation. The defense is always looking for a jury that comprises authoritarian minds with no history of pro-prosecution. As a result, the ground attributes that jury consultants look for from a jury are law and order mindsets and an inclination to punish wrongdoers and have a just society.

The Casey Anthony case was highly emotional. Casey was accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter. Jury consultants had to select a jury of professionals who would sit through the trials laden with emotions, scientific evidence, and testimonies. The selected jury would have to make rational decisions amid intense pretrial publicity that had befallen the case. Furthermore, jury consultants in the case had to be authoritarian and ready to recommend the death sentence to Casey Anthony (Speegle, 2012). Death sentences are often lengthy and require many jury sittings to examine the evidence and deliver a final ruling since the defendant's life is usually on balance leaving no chances of an appeal motion.

Jury consultants have the role of conducting extensive research on their client's case and determining the probable impact of their findings on trial (Speegle, 2012). For instance, in the Casey Anthony case, jury consultants liaised with the defense to collect and publish online records regarding the defendant. The action made case information available to the general public including the jury and controlled the pre-trial notions that hurt Casey. Furthermore, the move by jury consultants provided direct information to the public as opposed to relying solely on media coverage which can be easily manipulated.

Jury consultants thus have a critical role in determining the most suitable jury for the defense team. Human factors and experiences profoundly affect the process of prosecution, and they can lead to a wrongful conviction if not controlled. Jury consultants offer experienced professionals who research the case and the probable jurors and propose the most unbiased jury. Casey won the case since the jury and public records posted by the jury consultants and the defense altered public opinion to the inclination that Casey was not guilty. The revelation of the evidence without prejudgments and pro-prosecution led to a fair trial that served justice.

References

Speegle, C. T. (2012). Socially Unpopular Verdict: A Post-Casey Anthony Analysis of the Need to Reform Juror Privacy Policy. Cumb. L. Rev., 43, 259.