Psychologists have discovered that the makeup of death-qualified juries tends to be biased because they are likely to contain __.
a. mostly jurors who are male, white, high income, conservative, and authoritarian
b. only males, who are racially biased and connected to the plaintiff
c. people picked by the attorneys with strong views on death-penalty as the ultimate punishment
d. people who are not opposed to the death penalty
The correct answer and explanation is:
The correct answer is d. people who are not opposed to the death penalty.
Explanation:
Death-qualified juries are juries that are specifically selected for trials involving capital punishment, where the defendant could face the death penalty if convicted. The jury selection process for these cases is designed to ensure that jurors are able to impose the death penalty if they believe it is warranted based on the evidence and the law. As a result, individuals who have strong moral or ethical objections to the death penalty are typically excluded from these juries.
This selection process leads to a bias in the jury composition because it filters out potential jurors who may be anti-death penalty. Research has shown that individuals opposed to the death penalty tend to be more diverse in terms of race, income, and political beliefs. In contrast, those who are not opposed to the death penalty tend to be more conservative, often white, and may have higher incomes. Therefore, the jury pool for death penalty cases often ends up being skewed in favor of people who support the death penalty, which could influence the trial’s outcome, as they may be more inclined to convict or impose the death penalty when compared to a more balanced jury.
This bias raises concerns about the fairness of trials where the death penalty is a potential outcome. If the jury composition is not representative of the broader community and disproportionately excludes those with different views, it can lead to a lack of impartiality. This has been a subject of ongoing legal and ethical debates regarding the fairness and constitutionality of the death penalty.