Forming the lists of potential jurors: organizational and procedural issues

Abstract

Relevance of the research topic. The article discusses the problems associated with the requirements for potential jurors, analyzes the difficulties that arise when the executive and administrative bodies of municipalities form the lists of potential jurors. Attention is drawn to the uncertainty of particular regulatory provisions in relation to the issues discussed in the article. Based on an analysis of the practical activities of authorized bodies and the positions of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, options are proposed for resolving situations that have not found unambiguous solution in the current legislation when forming lists of potential jurors - the basis for the formation of a jury that meets the requirements of independence and impartiality. The research purpose is to identify conflicts in the current legislation when forming lists of potential jurors and to substantiate measures aimed at improving the quality of persons to be included in such lists. Research methodology, aimed at determining the balance of public and private interests, which does not allow arbitrary restrictions on individual rights and freedoms when forming lists of potential jurors, is based on the general scientific dialectical method of cognition of objective reality. The use of the formal legal method gives grounds to the author's conclusions. The methods of analysis (systemic and logical), synthesis and legal modeling revealed the need to eliminate conflicts of legal norms and make changes to legislation aimed at specifying the requirements for potential jurors and optimizing the relationship between authorized bodies when empanelling a jury. Results and conclusions of the research. The current legislation, defining the requirements for potential jurors and the procedure for forming the lists of potential jurors, is laconic, which reduces the quality of citizens subsequently called upon to administer justice. The stability of court verdicts with the participation of jurors must be ensured, starting from the stage of selecting citizens of the Russian Federation when forming the lists of potential jurors. The powers of the executive and administrative bodies of municipalities to form these require clarification (in particular, when requesting information necessary to form the lists of potential jurors), and the requirements for potential jurors should be closer to the requirements for judges (in relation to the second or multiple citizenship).

Keywords

• potential jurors
• list of potential jurors
• empanelling a jury
• jury trial