4.05.2010

Seattle DUI Lawyer | Bench Trial or Jury Trial?

So you have been accused of a wrong. Maybe a DUI, possibly an mugging, maybe a burglary. And the state isn't offering you anything you feel contented accepting as a plea bargain. Your Seattle DUI attorney tells you the solitary option, if you don't desire the proposal, is a trial.

You're all right with that, but are a little cautious about the minutiae. In particular, you are not sure if you should ask for a jury trial or request a bench trial. Your Seattle DUI lawyer is suggesting a jury trial, however you just do not know if you can depend on a bunch of people you do not know to make the just verdict.

Picking between a jury trial or a bench trial (where the judge makes the choice of your guilt or innocence) can at times be complicated, even for a DUI attorney. Let's look at a pair of scenarios that may need you to go one way or another.

First, the jury trial. You like jury trials since jurors frequently aren't as fed-up as judges (they've heard a lot of excuses over the years and start to stop attempting to identify the distinction). They struggle vigorously to do the just thing and will usually grant you at least a fighting probability. Although they can be unpredictable too.

You frequently desire a jury trial when the case is fairly unsupported, when you possess various inconsistencies in the proof that just do not make sense, and when you need the fact finder to give you the benefit of the doubt. Juries are capable of doing this. With judges it's slightly more complex.

After that, the DUI bench trial. You typically like to have these when you hold a especially technical defense, the facts of the case are really ghastly (the jury will practically be certain to be critical of you from the beginning), or you are going to establish your argument on a legal topic that you feel the judge will understand better than a jury. This also is a crap shoot, as judges, while not unpredictable, have a propensity to lean toward the prosecution.

In the end, the decision to go jury trial or bench trial should possibly be completed by your Seattle DUI attorney. They have the knowledge to recognize which one to employ, and they appreciate the intricacy of the judgment. No matter which you pick, though, it's doubtless going to be an uphill battle. Good luck!