Avoiding Legal Trouble

What Qualities Do Lawyers Look For In Jurors For Drug Crimes?

If you are facing drug charges and are planning on going through a trial to settle your case, one of the big steps in the trial involves the selection of the jury members. The process of choosing jurors often takes an entire day, or longer, and it is an important step in your trial. Your lawyer will be highly selective when approving jurors to serve on the panel for your trial, and here are some of the top qualities your lawyer is likely to look for in the jurors he or she chooses.

An open mind about the legalization of drugs

There are people that are completely opposed to legalizing drugs, such as marijuana, and then there are people who greatly favor the event of legalizing drugs for recreational or medicinal use. One of the qualities your lawyer will look for in the jurors he or she selects is their views on this, and your lawyer will likely want to choose people who tend to be more liberal about legalizing drugs. If you can have people on your jury that are in favor of legalizing drugs, they might be more willing to view your case from your perspective rather than from the prosecutor's perspective.  

An understanding and compassionate view of drug addiction

Secondly, your lawyer will want to select members for the jury who are more understanding about drug addiction and who have a more compassionate view of this. By choosing jurors like this, there is a better chance they may feel sorry for you if you struggle with a drug addiction. If so, you might end up receiving more help from the court than just a consequence of jail time or something similar.

A lifestyle that includes regular social drinking

The other quality that is important to find in jurors is people who regularly consume alcohol socially or even just at home. People who take part in this type of lifestyle might offer more sympathy to you in your drug case than people who are totally opposed to consuming alcohol, whether it be at home or in social situations.  

Choosing the jurors that will serve at your trial is one of the most important steps in the legal process, and your lawyer will know what jurors to add and which to dismiss. If you have questions about this process or about any other step in your trial, contact a criminal lawyer today.


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