Jurors' Role in Teen Court
Teen Court conducts two hearings each Tuesday evening. Volunteer Jurors will earn 2 hours of community service each Tuesday.
- When selected to be on a jury, it is important to maintain proper courtroom decorum because you are now one of the most important people in the Teen Court process.
- When the hearing is about to begin, the judge will "swear you in" and tell you to listen to the facts that you are about to hear.
- You are to base your decision on the evidence you hear as the teen prosecution and defense attorneys question the defendant. These cases are a serious matter and should be carefully decided.
- As you listen to the evidence it is your job to consider if the defendant is remorseful for his or her actions, the age and maturity of the defendant, the seriousness of the crime, whether there was a loss to the victim and whether the defendant was punished at home for this incident.
It is not your job to decide whether the defendant is guilty or innocent. Your job is to decide on a sentence that is fair and just after listening to the testimony.
- You are required to decide how many mandatory community service hours and nights of Jury Duty the defendant must serve within the given range based upon the crime that was committed.
- Aside from the required sanctions, you may impose additional sanctions that would benefit the defendant such as:
- Letters of apology
- Essays
- Educational classes