Scientific Jury Selection


Buy It Now!

‘Articulate’ book examines psychology and the law
(August/September 2007 Issue)

“Scientific Jury Selection”
By Joel D. Lieberman and Bruce D. Sales
American Psychological Association
Washington, D.C., 2007

By James K. Luiselli, Ed.D., ABPP, BCBA

Whether a forensic psychologist, a mental health professional interested in the law or just a fan of CourtTV, you're aware of the attention paid to jury selection in legal proceedings. This book examines the involvement of psychologists and other social scientists as trial consultants in the process of jury selection. Although seemingly limited in scope, it actually covers ground that should appeal to a wide audience.

Jury selection is important for several reasons: to determine possible community (venue) bias, to predict verdict inclination and to select prosecution and defense themes at trial. Accordingly, attorneys place great stock in the manner by which juries are composed. The question posed throughout this book is, "Are attorneys more likely to win cases if they call on jury selection consultants as opposed to relying on their own hunches?"

To help understand the mechanics of jury selection, Lieberman and Sales advise about accepted trial conduct and protocol in several introductory chapters. They spend considerable time explaining the procedure of voir dire, essentially the pretrial examination of jurors to eliminate prejudices in civil and criminal litigation. After reviewing the available evidence, the authors conclude that attorney-directed voir dire generally is ineffective and has minimal impact on a jury's verdict.

How then can jury selection consultants assist attorneys? While there is no single answer to this question, the book presents many theories and growing research support for a few conclusions. For example, juror demographics such as age, gender, ethnicity-race and socioeconomic status are unreliable predictors of juror behavior. Similarly, personality and attitudinal disposition are not strongly predictive. The authors do a good job supporting these claims by thoroughly referencing the available literature.

What appears to aid jury selection is the evidence in a particular case and how attorneys present it at trial. The book describes how a jury consultant can use this information in concert with pretrial community surveys and mock juries to better judge the responses of potential jurors. These are intriguing strategies notwithstanding the resources required to implement them successfully.

I was pleased to see a chapter on ethical and professional issues that apply when conducting jury selection. Stated succinctly by the authors, "Does scientific jury selection violate the constitutional right to a trial by impartial jury if one party uses the technique and the other party does not?" Lieberman and Sales cover this topic and related issues adroitly, proffering many proposed reforms and practice recommendations.

Psychology students and professionals interested in the law will enjoy "Scientific Jury Selection." It is a masterful presentation of a fascinating albeit highly technical topic. The authors are objective commentators who weigh their opinions against empirical evidence from the legal and behavioral sciences arenas. They have significantly advanced the domain of psychology and the law with this comprehensive, reasoned and articulate book.

James K. Luiselli, Ed.D., ABPP, BCBA, is senior vice president, applied research, clinical training and peer review at the May Institute in Norwood, Mass.