Jury duty and specialized courts

You are to respond as a thread to this forum. Your response should be no less than 450 words and is due NLT Sunday end of the WEEK. Make sure you answer each question. Remember, you are also expected to respond to at least two other classmates’ posts in order to receive full credit for your post.

1. You are to use your assigned state (in the list below) and in the state of Tennessee to research the use of dispute resolution and specialized courts in your assigned state. Provide what you find describing your findings to the class. How does your state differ from TN? Are there any similarities that you found as well?
2. Research the requirements for jury duty in your assigned state from #1, as well as who is exempted from jury service. Compare and contrast how these requirements differ from the requirements in the state of Tennessee. From what you have learned, create an “ideal” jury pool.
3. You should find at least 3 people over the age of 18 years old to inquire about their opinions about the death penalty. Use the survey instrument here and conduct personal interviews to gauge the degree of opposition to or support for the death penalty. Ensure you collect demographic information such as (age, race or ethnicity, sex, political affiliation if applicable). You will submit an overall summary of your findings.
   • (ex, 100% of the interviewees agree with the death penalty. They believe… All of the respondents were female ages 22, 35, 67, and one Latina (35 y/o) and 2 African American (22 and 67-year-olds). They agree with the death penalty because…)
4. The text mentions an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court regarding the admission of a victim-impact video in a capital case; the Court rejected the appeal. Watch the video and read the statements by Justice Stevens, who agreed with the rejection but expressed concerns, and Justice Breyer, who dissented (The video and statements are available on the U.S. Supreme Court website under the case Kelly v. California). Discuss:
   1. a) whether you think the video in the Kelly case was appropriate,
   2. b) whether victim-impact videos are appropriate in capital cases, and
   3. c) whether victim-impact videos should be allowed at sentencing in non-capital cases.

URL for Question 3:

http://faculty.polytechnic.org/gfeldmeth/20.cpquest.pdf

URL for Question 4:

https://www.supremecourt.gov/media/video/mp4files/kelly_v_california.mp4

STATE ASSIGNMENTS

Banton – AL

Bruno – AZ

Bryson – AR

Buchanon – CA

Castaneda Gomez – CO

Chamness – CT

Chen – MS

Cicero – GA

Clark – FL

Ferrell – VA

Grant – KY

Hignite – WV

Holloway – NY

Jones – WI

Lumpkin – MI

Montoya – IL

Moore – TX

Oaks – WA

Peacock – PA

Ryan – NJ

Shackleford – NC

Stewart – SC