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2002 FINAL STATELEGISLATIVE PROGRAM MIDDLE RANGE ISSUE ISSUE: CHANGES IN THE JURY TRIAL SYSTEM SUMMARY: There has been concern among members of the Maryland Judiciary for over a decade that the system of dealing with criminal and civil cases has resulted in serious imbalances between the circuit and district courts. Critics of the present system claim that requests for jury trials often are used to obtain delays, to inconvenience unfavorable witnesses, to wait until a more lenient judge is available, or to improve the defendant's plea bargaining position. In recent years several jurisdictions have used "instant jury trials" to reduce the number of jury trials in their courts. The "Settlement Week" concept also has been implemented with a high success rate of those cases considered. The 1992 General Assembly considered several bills that were intended to restructure the jury trial system in order to promote economy and efficiency in the judicial branch. Two constitutional amendments, one allowing six person juries in civil trials and the other increasing the amount in controversy necessary to demand a jury trial in civil proceedings from $500 to $5,000, passed the 1992 General Assembly and were ratified by the voters. The 1998 General Assembly increased this threshold to $10,000 which was ratified by the voters in November, 1998. On the criminal side, attempts to enact changes to limit the right to a jury trial in the first instance and to eliminate completely the right to a jury trial for offenses with penalties of six months or less, or a fine of $500 or less were defeated. No bills affecting the structure of the jury trial system were filed in 1999 or 2000. In 1998 the Council on Jury Use and Management was created to find ways to improve the jury system in Maryland. The report of the Council was issued in 2000 and contained a series of recommendations. These recommendations were reviewed by the MSBA Board of Governors which adopted Association positions on them. MSBA 2002 POSITION: No position until legislation is available. SAMPLE LEGISLATION:
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