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Acquittals blamed on jury system

Jurors feeling intimidated, failing to comprehend the complicated nature of evidence or having certain leanings during a trial where there is a political slant are all influencing the outcome of cases to the detriment of the prosecution, according to the Attorney General.

Speaking during a wide-ranging interview with MaltaToday, Anthony Borg Barthet, who has made no secret of his criticism of the jury system, says that these are just three problems that the prosecution come up against, which are contributing to the high number of acquittals.

"I stand by my views, which incidentally are shared by many, that juries are not professional," he says. "Jurors don’t have the experience to make certain decisions. Experience helps you realise whether a person is lying or telling the truth, and jurors, unlike judges or magistrates, don’t have that."

He makes a particular reference to criminal trials with political input.

"We never ask for a juror to be disempanelled because he is a member of a political party, but if you get a majority of jurors belonging to the party that thinks there should be an acquittal, we’ve had it," he says. "If someone in politics gets involved in a criminal case, either as a witness or a victim then it’s completely impossible to empanel a jury with a clear, impartial view."

He also points out that many jurors don’t want the responsibility of having to make a decision on the outcome of a trial.

"Whenever a list of jurors is posted, we find a great number who don’t want to do it, either because their lives are interrupted or simply because they don’t think they’re up to it," he adds. "In drugs cases, a lot of jurors feel threatened, while homicides bring different problems, primarily the technical aspects, and also how to ensure jurors remain dispassionate."

He stresses that because the jurors are not academically trained, they can be taken in emotionally.

"We err on the side of mercy and the result is that we have had too many acquittals or homicide cases dropped to lesser charges," he says. "If society feels safe that way, then good for it, but I don’t think it should. If it doesn’t want people who have murdered somebody behind bars, why have a trial at all?"