Highlight In Legal Texas Jury Instructions Forms For Free

To return a valid verdict in criminal trials, jurors must reach a unanimous verdict. In civil trials, agreement of just five sixths of the jurors is sufficient to reach a valid verdict.

Article 38.23 reads: (a) No evidence obtained by an officer or other person in violation of any provisions of the Constitution or laws of the State of Texas, or of the Constitution or laws of the United States of America, shall be admitted in evidence against the accused on the trial of any criminal case.

If even one member of the jury panel disagrees with the rest, the jury is hung, and the defendant retains the presumption of innocence. A ?hung jury? results in either: a mistrial (which means there may be a retrial with a new jury), a plea bargain to a reduced charge that carries a lesser sentence, or.

Different types of juries ? Trial Jury. Also referred to as a Petit jury, a trial jury consists of 6 -12 people. A trial jury decides the verdict in a criminal case. ... ? Civil jury. A civil jury usually has less than 12 jurors. ... ? Grand jury. A grand jury sits in federal criminal cases and is made up of 16 ? 23 people.

The judge issues a judge's charge to inform the jury how to act in deciding a case. The jury instructions provide something of a flowchart on what verdict jurors should deliver based on what they determine to be true. Put another way, "If you believe A (set of facts), you must find X (verdict).

The grand jury listens to felony cases and decides whether or not there is probable cause to indict. In order to vote for a true bill of indictment, at least nine (9) grand jurors must agree.