Effect of Jurors' Race on Their Response to Scientific Evidence

• NCJ Number: 238324
• Author(s): Stephanie L. Albertson
• Date Published: 2012
• Length: 172 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2002-IJ-CX-0026
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
• Sale Source: LFB Scholarly Publishing LLC
• Publication Format: Book (Hardbound)
• Publication Type: Survey (Cross-Cultural); Case Study
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This book analyzes the influence of jurors' race on perceptions of complex scientific evidence.

Abstract

This book examines the perceptions jurors have toward science and technology and how these attitudes influence their perceptions of scientific evidence. With complex scientific evidence becoming commonplace in trials, it is crucial to examine whether African-Americans perceive this evidence differently when compared to Whites. Chapter 1 introduces the issues of influence of jurors' race on perceptions of complex scientific evidence. Chapter 2 discusses the impact of attitude formation on jury decisionmaking. Chapter 3 introduces background information on the science of DNA and the use of complex scientific evidence in the courts. Chapter 4 explores the topic of scientific evidence and juror comprehension. Chapter 5 presents results from the statistical analyses. Chapter 6 provides a discussion of significant findings in the study, its contribution to jury research design and methodology, its contribution to relevant scholarly debates, and suggestions for future research. Tables, appendix, references, and index