Q1:After reading about juries and trials in chapter 12 of your text, offer your ideas for improving the jury trial procedure in the United States. For example, do you believe there are ways to promote more objective decision-making by juries?
Q2:One might logically conclude that prisons are improperly used in our country. Since 1972 we've increased our prison population from 300,000 to 2,300,000. We have the highest prison population on the planet. We imprison 686 for every 100,000 people.
By comparison China, with a population five times larger than ours, has 1.51 million prisoners for a rate of 117 per 100,000. In fact our prison population has continued to grow even though crime rates dropped.
It is easy for politicians to win votes by promising to "get tough on crime", and this leads to mandatory sentencing and other factors increasing prison population. Who should be sentenced to prison?