The Eyes Have It: Nonverbal Communication in Court

• Pages: 30-31
• Date: 01 January 2025
• Published date: 01 January 2025
• Author: Mark A. Drummond
• Subject Matter: Derecho Público y Administrativo

By Hon. Mark A. Drummond (Ret.), Litigation News Associate Editor

“When the eyes say one thing, and the tongue another,

a practical man relies on the language of the rst.”

—Ralph Waldo Emerson, The Conduct of Life (1860)

ilence was the topic for my last column. I have also

written about word choice. It is the morning after the

vice-presidential debate. I am reading yet another col-

umn about non-verbal communication. It’s time to

write about it.

The rst presidential debate between John F. Kennedy Jr.

and Richard M. Nixon was held on September 26, 1960. It

was the rst televised debate between candidates for president.

Many articles were written saying that those who watched

the debate on television felt Kennedy had won, but those who

heard it on the radio thought Nixon the winner.

The pundits and scholars said this was due to non-verbal

communication. On television Nixon appeared sweaty and

wiped his face. He was pale and his looking at the clock made

him appear shifty-eyed. Kennedy came across as calm, cool,

and collected.

The Eyes Have It: Nonverbal

Communication in Court

Forty-four years later, political pundits are commenting

on similar non-verbal issues. President Biden’s expressions,

or lack thereof, in his poor debate performance were fodder

for the postmortem debate commentary. Many column inches

were devoted to the facial expressions during the two debates

of the four remaining candidates. Social media commentators

claimed that J.D. Vance made a “Jim Halpert” face during the

vice-presidential debate.

This intense focus on non-verbal communication brings me

to tips for the courtroom to make sure the visual matches the

verbal.

Jury Selec tion

We pull citizens from their homes where the day before they

were mowing lawns and paying bills. They arrive as strangers

to each other and are then asked questions about themselves

and their attitudes in front of people they do not know. It can

be very intimidating.

I believe standing up while questioning jurors shows them

that you are not going to hide behind counsel table writing

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