3d Cir. Model Jury Instr. (Criminal) 1.01

I am Judge (name), the trial judge in this case. You have been called to this

courtroom as a panel of prospective jurors for the case of United States v. (defendants (s)

name(s)). This is a criminal case in which (name(s)) (is) (are) charged with committing the

crime(s) of (offense(s) charged), in violation of federal criminal law.

From this panel we will select the jurors who will sit on the jury that will decide

this case. We will also select alternate jurors, who will be part of this trial and available

in the event that one of the regular jurors becomes ill or is otherwise unable to continue

on the jury.

We rely on juries in this country to decide cases tried in our courts, so service on

a jury is an important duty of citizenship. Jurors must conduct themselves with honesty,

integrity, and fairness.

Under our system of justice, the role of the jury is to find the facts of the case

based on the evidence presented in the trial. That is, from the evidence seen and heard in

court, the jury decides what the facts are, and then applies to those facts the law that I

will give in my instructions to the jury. My role as the trial judge is to make whatever

legal decisions must be made during the trial and to explain to the jury the legal

principles that will guide its decisions.

We recognize that you are all here at some sacrifice. However, we cannot excuse

anyone merely because of personal inconvenience, unless serving on this jury would be a

compelling hardship.

In a few minutes you will be sworn to answer truthfully questions about your

qualifications to sit as jurors in this case. This questioning process is called the voir dire.

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I will conduct the questioning, and the lawyers for the parties may also participate. It is,

of course, essential that you answer these questions truthfully; a deliberately untruthful

answer could result in severe penalties.

The voir dire examination will begin with a brief statement about the particulars

of this case. The purpose of this statement is to tell you what the case is about and to

identify the parties and their lawyers.

Questions will then be asked to find out whether any of you have any personal

interest in this case or know of any reason why you cannot render a fair and impartial

verdict. We want to know whether you are related to or personally acquainted with any

of the parties, their lawyers, or any of the witnesses who may appear during the trial,

and whether you already know anything about this case. Other questions will be asked

to determine whether any of you have any beliefs, feelings, life experiences, or any other

reasons that might influence you in rendering a verdict.

The questions are not intended to embarrass you. If you have a response that you

are uncomfortable sharing publicly, please let me know and I will see that you are

questioned in private. I also may decide on my own that questions should be asked in

private.

After this questioning, some of you will be chosen to sit on the jury for this case. If

you are not chosen, you should not take it personally and you should not consider it a

reflection on your ability or integrity.

There may be periods of silence during the voir dire process, when the lawyers

and I are not speaking openly. During those times you may talk, but you must not talk

about this case or about the voir dire questions and answers.

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[If the trial judge wants to give a further explanation of the challenge and selection process,

here is alternative language that may be used for that purpose:

Alternative 1: After we complete the questioning, the lawyers and I will decide which

of you will be chosen to sit on the jury. Please be patient while we complete the selection

process.

Al ternative 2: After this questioning is completed, the parties on either side may ask

that a member of the panel be excused or exempted from service on the jury in this case. These

are called challenges.

First: A prospective juror may be challenged for cause if the voir dire examination

shows that he or she might be prejudiced or otherwise unable to render a fair and impartial

verdict in this case. I will excuse a prospective juror if I decide that there is sufficient cause

for the challenge. There is no limit to the number of challenges for cause. Second: The

parties also have the right to a certain limited number of challenges for which no cause is

necessary. These are called peremptory challenges, and each party has a predetermined

number of peremptory challenges. The peremptory challenge is a right long-recognized by the

law as a means of giving the parties some choice in the make-up of the jury. You should

understand that if you are eliminated from the jury panel by a peremptory challenge that is

not a reflection on your ability or integrity.]

If you are selected as a juror in this case, you cannot discuss the case with your

fellow jurors before you are permitted to do so at the conclusion of the trial, or with

anyone else until after a decision has been reached by the jury. Therefore, you cannot

talk about the case or otherwise have any communications about the case with anyone,

including your fellow jurors, until I tell you that such discussions may take place. Thus,

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in addition to not having face-to-face discussions with your fellow jurors or anyone else,

you cannot communicate with anyone about the case in any way, whether in writing, or

through email, text messaging, blogs, or comments, or on social media websites and apps

(like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, WhatsApp, and Snapchat). (If

you feel that you cannot do this, then you cannot let yourself become a member of the jury in

this case. Is there anyone who will not be able to comply with this restriction?)

You also cannot conduct any type of independent or personal research or

investigation regarding any matters related to this case. Therefore, you cannot use your

cellphones, iPads, computers or any other device to do any research or investigation

regarding this case, the matters in the case, the legal issues in the case, or the individuals

or other entities involved in the case. And you must ignore any information about the

case you might see, even accidentally, while browsing the internet or on your social

media feeds. This is because you must base the decisions you will have to make in this

case solely on what you hear and see in this courtroom. (If you feel that you cannot do this,

then you cannot let yourself become a member of the jury in this case. Is there anyone who

will not be able to comply with this restriction?)