Expert in the Box: Keeping The Lid on Unchallenged Testimony

Authors

• Derek L. Busch

Document Type

Notes

Abstract

A juror with specialized knowledge carries the potential to infringe upon the trial rights of the accused, provided to them by the Sixth Amendment and incorporated to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment. These rights include the right to an impartial jury and the right of confrontation, recognized since the founding of the first colonies. When a juror possesses relevant professional expertise or background information regarding evidence adduced at trial, there is a risk in how the juror will use this personal knowledge in deliberations. Particularly, there is a concern the juror will use their knowledge to add information, rather than interpret the evidence in front of them. In this scenario, a juror has no longer remained impartial but has become a trial witness shielded from cross examination by the black box of jury deliberations. To combat this impermissible introduction of evidence, three solutions should be implemented: 1) Al-low jurors with specialized knowledge to be challenged for cause during voir dire, 2) Issue a jury instruction regarding the use of specialized knowledge if a juror with a pertinent background is empaneled on the jury, and 3) provide that a juror who impermissibly uses their specialized knowledge be replaced with an avail-able alternate juror.

Recommended Citation

Busch, Derek L. (2026) "Expert in the Box: Keeping The Lid on Unchallenged Testimony," Georgia Criminal Law Review: Vol. 4: No. 2, Article 4.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/gclr/vol4/iss2/4