12.12 - 1. Juror Is Unqualified

• Jurisdiction: New York

1. Juror Is Unqualified

The Supreme Court of the United States has held that states are allowed, under the Constitution, to establish qualifications that a person must meet before the person is permitted to serve on a jury. Citizenship, age and educational standards are all permissible.¹⁸⁹⁷ The specific qualifications required by New York are contained in the Judiciary Law.¹⁸⁹⁸ No person may serve on a jury in New York unless the person is a citizen and a resident of the county in which the trial is being held;¹⁸⁹⁹ jurors must be at least 18 years old.¹⁹⁰⁰ No one can serve on a jury after having been convicted of a felony.¹⁹⁰¹ Jurors must be able to read, write and speak English.¹⁹⁰² They must be able to hear.

When confronted with . . . a situation involving a prospective juror’s hearing impairment, a court must determine whether the individual has the ability to “understand all of the evidence presented, evaluate that evidence in a rational manner, communicate effectively with the other jurors during deliberations, and comprehend the applicable legal principles, as instructed by the court.” If a judge is made aware of a reasonable accommodation that would allow a hearing-impaired prospective juror to fulfill these duties without interfering with the defendant’s trial rights, such measures should be taken, ¹⁹⁰³

for instance, where a prospective juror said that a sign language interpreter would allow him to follow the trial verbatim.¹⁹⁰⁴ Judges have discretion in determining whether an auditory problem will interfere with a juror’s ability to perform his duties. Their questions and observations in this regard are on-site.¹⁹⁰⁵ It is reassuring to believe that generally speaking, venirepersons will have “common sense,” although cynics, with a wry smile, may posit the truism that if their “common sense” is that which walks abroad in the world at any given time it has little to...