Chapter 3 - § 3.9 • ERRORS IN VOIR DIRE

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 3.9 • ERRORS IN VOIR DIRE

Colorado

➢ Juror Fails to Respond to Questions. A juror's failure to answer material questions truthfully during voir dire, if discovered during trial, may justify the removal of that juror and replacement with an alternate or result in a declaration of mistrial. However, a prospective juror's untruthful answers on voir dire do not automatically entitle a party to a new trial. Rose v. Colorado Factory Homes, 10 P.3d 680, 682 (Colo. App. 2000); Allen v. Ramada Inn, Inc., 778 P.2d 291 (Colo. App. 1989).

➢ Actual Bias. If a juror's nondisclosure was inadvertent, it must be shown that the undisclosed facts were such as to have created an actual bias. Absent such a showing, it will be assumed that the juror followed the instructions of the court and decided the case based solely on the evidence and the law. Rose v. Colorado Factory Homes, 10 P.3d 680, 682-83 (Colo. App. 2000).

Federal

➢ Juror Fails to Respond to Question. In order to obtain a new trial, a party must first demonstrate that a juror failed to answer honestly a material question on voir dire, and then further show that a correct response would have provided a valid basis for a

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