New Hampshire Senate Committee Hears About Jury Nullification

By David Darman on Tuesday, May 20, 2003.

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A bill before a New Hampshire Senate committee would give every jury the chance to refuse to convict an otherwise guilty defendant.

The concept is known as ï¿½jury nullificationï¿½, and supporters want to expand the concept.

But state law enforcement officials and much of the legal community stand against expanded nullification.

NHPRï¿½s David Darman has more.

Supporters of jury nullification told the Senate Judiciary Committee that the right has existed for hundreds of years.

Members of the jury, they say, have the right to acquit a defendant if they believe a law is unjust.

Representative James Marple of Hooksett says the right exists, but New Hampshire judges rarely tell juries about it.
09 214 and so what the fully informed jury bill says is, just because youï¿½ve been denied information, that you have this power, weï¿½re going to tell you, you do have this power. 09 226

New Hampshire judges currently have the discretion to tell juries about nullification.

But t state law requires jurors decide the facts of a criminal case, and nothing more.

Much of State and local law enforcement want to keep New Hampshire law the way it is.

Attorney General Peter Heed says if expanded jury nullification gets to each courtroom, trials could become referenda on the justness of New Hampshire laws.
02 235 In every case, we will be faced with, or prosecutors will be faced with a situation, where the burden becomes on them to show, or try to prove to the jury, the law in question is reasonable and fair. And has a reasonable basis underlying that law. 02 300

That, says Heed, would make prosecution more difficult.
Defense attorneys would clearly benefit in other ways as well.

Representative Jim Craig of Manchester is himself a practicing attorney.
01 441 my feeling is that the unintended consequence is that you make this, by giving the jury this right, you basically are giving the right to the defendant, and you are making a defense recognized by the law by doing so. 01 457

Sponsors of the bill accuse critics of over-dramatizing the effect of their legislation.

But expanded jury nullification has not become law in any other state.

Attorney Richard McNamara is secretary of the New Hampshire Bar Association.

McNamara says expanding jury nullification wonï¿½t get this state any closer to getting defendants equal justice.
05 205 Would you have a right to a fair trial, if a juror came in and said, Iï¿½m going to convict everyone who comes in the courtroom?. Or, Iï¿½m going to acquit everyone who comes in a courtroom?. The jurors canï¿½t decide the law. Thatï¿½s the province of the legislature. 05 222

The New Hampshire Legislature has considered expanded jury nullification in past years, but it has never passed both the House and Senate.

This year, measure has already passed the House.

It has now made its first stop in the Senate Judiciary Committee, before heading to the full Senate.
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