If you are accused of a crime in Texas, you have the right to be tried by a jury of your peers, which is referred to as a jury trial. Unless you make a plea deal, the prosecution also has the right to try your case before a jury of your peers. In other words, either you or the state can require that your case go to trial.
In the past, you also had the sole right – as the defendant – to request a bench trial, which is a trial that’s heard by the judge on the bench with no jury involved, but this right has changed over time. Now, if you choose to have a bench trial, the prosecution must agree to the request, and the court must accept the request.
There are a range of reasons for the defense to choose a bench trial and for the prosecution to accept or reject the option. If you’re facing a criminal charge of any kind, the sooner you have the trusted legal guidance of an experienced Round Rock criminal defense attorney on your side, the better protected your rights will be throughout the legal process.
The Trier of Fact vs. The Finder of Law
The trier of fact refers to the person or panel who determines questions of fact in a trial. This trier of fact listens to the testimony, reviews the evidence, and ultimately determines what actually happened in the case at hand. The trier of fact is responsible for determining what the facts of the case are and for ruling the defendant’s guilt or innocence based on these facts.
Ultimately, the trier of fact is tasked with deciding if the defendant is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the charge in question, which very generally means that there is no other reasonable explanation.
The finder of law, on the other hand, is the person responsible for making legal rulings in the case at hand. This includes determining whether specific evidence is admissible and, therefore, whether or not the evidence can be considered by the trier of fact.
In a jury trial, the jury is the trier of fact, and the judge is the trier of law. This is what you commonly see in police procedurals – when either side is attempting to get evidence thrown out or allowed in, and the jury either hears and considers the evidence or doesn’t.
In a bench trial, however, the judge is both the trier of law and the trier of fact – who goes on to sentence the defendant if they are found guilty. At a bench trial, all three primary elements of the trial are performed by the judge, which can be a good option under highly specific circumstances.
The Jury
In a jury trial, the 12 jurors must come to a unanimous decision in order to render a verdict of guilty or not guilty. This means that the prosecution must move 12 people to find you guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the charge levied against – rather than just one, the judge, in a bench trial.
In other words, a jury adds a buffer zone of protection because even one jurist who can’t be convinced of your guilt can lead to a mistrial, which means you’re not found guilty. While the prosecution can retry you, they may recognize that they don’t currently have enough evidence against you and, therefore, may not.
Conversely, in a bench trial, you can count on the judge reaching a verdict.
Selecting the Jury
If you have a jury trial, the jury members will be selected from a pool of potential jurors who are randomly selected from the community, which reflects the jury of your peers that you’re entitled to.
The jury selection process is referred to a voir dire, and during voir dire, your attorney, the prosecuting attorney, and the judge hearing your case can ask the potential jurists questions to help them assess each person’s suitability in relation to your case.
The judge has the right to excuse potential jurists who are not qualified legally to serve or who would experience undue hardship. For example, if a potential jurist is the sole caregiver for a family member who needs round-the-clock care, the judge may excuse them from duty.
The judge can also dismiss a potential jury member for their actual or perceived bias if that bias could interfere with their ability to perform the role of a jurist impartially.
For their part, both your attorney and the attorney for the prosecution can request that certain individuals be removed from the jury pool either for cause or through peremptory challenge.
For Cause
When the challenge is for cause, it means that either side has a legal basis for claiming the juror’s unsuitability. Such challenges are generally based on biases or prejudices that the juror reveals during their initial questioning.
A reason must be provided when challenging a potential jury member for cause, but neither side can make more than one for-cause challenge.
Peremptory
Either side can also make peremptory challenges that exclude potential jurists without providing a reason – or cause. Peremptory challenges are limited to a specific number, and they can’t be based on any of the following:
Race
Sex
Ethnicity
If either side believes the challenge is based on such a cause, they can object to it.
Striking the Jury
Each side’s challenges are ultimately heard and decided by the judge during the process of striking the jury. When both sides are satisfied with the jury they’ve chosen – or when they’ve run through their allotted challenges – the jury is sworn in.
The Important Role Played by the Jury
Jury selection is a critical step in every jury trial, and there is a good deal of legal strategy involved. Your savvy Round Rock criminal defense attorney will be well prepared with questions that help them determine which potential jurists are best suited to your case, such as those who may be more sympathetic to the involved circumstances.
And the same goes for eliminating those potential jurists who may be biased against you.
With a bench trial, there is no jury process, and this aspect of the legal proceedings is cut from the program. It’s not difficult to understand why having a 12-member jury determine whether you are guilty or not guilty is generally preferable to leaving the matter up to one person – the judge hearing your case.
There are, however, specific circumstances when a bench trial is considered a better option, and this comes down to balancing the pros and cons and making the right decision for you – given the unique circumstances of your case.
The Judge in Your Case
The judge hearing your case is the judge hearing your case, which means you have no option, and there is no picking and choosing going on. A judge – by design – is impartial, but this said, they are also human. Some judges have reputations for being more or less fierce, for being more or less fair, and for being more or less sympathetic to certain defendants.
Your seasoned Round Rock criminal defense attorney will be keenly aware of your judge’s reputation and inclinations and will use this information to help you determine if a bench trial is the right choice for you.
The Potential Advantages of a Bench Trial: There Is a Lot to Consider
There is plenty to think about when deciding whether or not to pursue a bench trial – if it is even a consideration in your case. Often, defendants choose bench trials for reasons like the following:
The case is high profile, and it may be difficult to find an impartial jury – or 12 jurists who haven’t already made up their minds on the matter.
The charge is highly technical, and the jury could get bogged down with the details.
The crime is emotionally charged, and there is the risk that the jury could rule according to their feelings rather than in accordance with the law.
The defendant has an unsavory past that the jury may have trouble seeing beyond, or the defendant is otherwise unsympathetic.
While there are a range of potential advantages to pursuing a bench trial, most fall into basic categories.
Judges Tend to Be Measured
At a bench trial, the judge is very unlikely to render a judgment that seemingly comes out of nowhere – the way a jury can. The judge hearing your case is a public official with a good deal of experience hearing a wide range of cases, and they have a sophisticated understanding of the law’s intricacies.
Further, they have a reputation to uphold, which means they’re not prone to grandstanding or to surprising everyone with their announcements. When you go with a bench trial, you can reasonably expect a measured trier of fact and finder of law.
Juries Can Be Swayed by Emotion
A primary challenge when it comes to juries is that jurists can have a difficult time assigning the appropriate amount of weight to the evidence presented.
For example, if the evidence leads to an emotional reaction, it may be challenging for jurists to balance this with the legal weight it should be afforded. And the more emotional the case, the more intense this effect can be. This generally isn’t something you need to worry about, however, if you have a bench trial.
Judges Are Experienced Litigators
Judges spend their careers putting their emotions on hold while they consider the legal facts, which means their neutrality is practiced. When your case is heard by a judge, you can generally count on them to assign appropriate legal weight to the facts that may be unfavorable to your case – rather than to focus on them the way a jury might.
This can include evidence that tends to tarnish you personally, such as if you have a felony conviction on your record.
Another prime example is police testimony. Jurists are prone to judging such testimony as very credible and beyond question while experienced judges recognize that the credibility of police officers is not absolute and must be considered in the context of the case and in light of the facts.
Manageability
A primary advantage of a bench trial is overall manageability. Any defense attorney will tell you that it is very difficult to predict what a jury will do. While there are cases that proceed according to script and come with very few surprises, this is by no means the rule.
A rogue jurist who happens to also be convincing – and perhaps charming – could turn the entire panel in one direction or the other, and there may not be much you can do about it.
With a bench trial, on the other hand, you know what to expect, and that is a speedier trial with fewer disruptions – such as jurists’ scheduling concerns and jurists who simply fail to show up. Sidebars and meetings in the judge’s chambers are also eliminated.
All told a bench trial is more manageable, which may be the way to go if your case involves complex evidence that ultimately speaks to your innocence.
Make the Call to an Experienced Round Rock Criminal Defense Attorney Today
You are entitled to a jury of your peers if you are facing a criminal charge, and most cases that go to trial are heard by juries. There are, however, instances when a bench trial is considered advantageous.
Brett Pritchard at The Law Office of Brett H. Pritchard is a formidable Round Rock criminal defense attorney with decades of imposing experience who is keenly aware of when a bench trial is the way to go and when it is not. He is standing by to help you with every aspect of your case – whether that means accepting an advantageous plea deal or proceeding to trial.
Learn more by contacting or calling us at 254-781-4222 and scheduling a FREE consultation today.