Knowledge of past crimes can influence jury verdicts
The question of whether a jury should be made aware of a
defendant's criminal history is often debated.
Let's say you are on a jury considering the guilt or
innocence of a man charged with burglary. You are only able to make
your decision based on what you hear in court. You and your fellow
jurors decide the evidence against him isn't strong enough and
there is room for reasonable doubt.
You declare he is not guilty, and he walks free. You then learn
he has been convicted of burglary several times before. If you had
known this during the trial, would it have changed your
verdict?
What if the defendant faced charges of violent crime such as
assault, rape or murder? Should you as a juror have the right to
know the defendant's prior criminal record to help you assess
his character and the likelihood that he committed this particular
crime?
