Free press-fair trial : the effects of "sensational" and "non-sensational" pre-trial news stories and of a judge's admonition upon "Juror" and "non-Juror" guilt assessment
Year: 1972
Type: dissertation
Abstract: This dissertation is concerned with the effects of pre-trial news communications upon prospective jurors, and the effect of a judge's admonition to jurors upon their assessment of guilt of a person accused in a criminal case, The free press-fair trial issue long has been debated, and in recent years has been climaxed by profession-wide studies by both the bar and the press.The news media have argued that it is imperative that practitioners cover crime news from arrest to trial if the justice system is to continue to serve the needs of a democratic society.The bar, on the other hand, argued that the right of a person accused in a crime to a fair and impartial trial cannot be guaranteed if prejudicial information--often that which cannot be admitted in evidence in the courtroom--about a case is disseminated via the mass media before the case reaches the courts.This study has shed some light on the effect of sensational and non-sensational pre-trial news coverage upon prospective jurors' assessment of guilt of a defendant.It, too, has shed some light on the effect of a judge's admonition to prospective jurors to disregard information which they have read in the news media.One-hundred-twenty residents of Cache County, Utah, who were listed on the prospective jury duty list for 1970, participated in the study, as did officers of the First District Court, Logan, Utah.Many persons made significant contributions to this project.
Author: Marlan D. Nelson
Language: English
Subfield: Law
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Utah State University
OpenAlex ID: W367130799