By: Luke Murphy
However, I’d much prefer to see the issue of mandatory jury duty avoided simply by offering handsome compensation to incentivize volunteers. This could be achieved more easily with the abundant wealth...
View ArticleBy: Thomas M. Miovas, Jr.
I don’t have anything against Diana Hseih’s outspokenness. I think if she disagrees with something, she ought to come right out and say she disagrees with it and state her reasons, which I think she...
View ArticleBy: Chip Joyce
For civil cases, I think court funding could include a voluntary tax on all contracts of, say, 1% of the value of the transaction. That entitles you to the courts as needed for that contract. If you...
View ArticleBy: Chip Joyce
Another idea. The plaintiff in civil court must finance the juror’s compensation. They could purchase jurors’s insurance from a company: that company guarantees to pay for the juror fees should they...
View ArticleBy: apeikoff
The right to a jury trial — and therefore the compulsory element — would come into play only in criminal cases, presumably. And yes, there are plenty of ways to voluntarily fund the proper functions of...
View ArticleBy: Thomas M. Miovas, Jr.
I don’t think the primary issue is financing the courts, because basically, if you want something, you have to pay for it one way or the other. The government has no money on its own except through...
View ArticleBy: M. Stern
Regarding Diana Hsieh’s treatment of Dr. Peikoff, Diana has been a big defender of Dr. Peikoff in the past. I am not certain but it may be the case that the debate over the Ground Zero Mosque may have...
View ArticleBy: Adam Steven
I think some points are relevant to the comparison to the social contract in this case. I don't think Amy's is a social contract theory (at least not in the traditional sense), and I think the issue...
View ArticleBy: Edmund Bonczyk II, $
The philosophy of Jurisprudence should tell one how to make jury duty plausible, more equitable, and “enjoyable”. Some possible answers follow. 1. Construct juries to have 7 members, not 12. This...
View ArticleBy: Thomas M. Miovas, Jr.
I think I agree with you that The Constitution is not a binding contract on the American people — it is only binding on the Federal Government and sets the boundaries of the government. It doesn’t...
View ArticleBy: Jim May
NS nailed the point I was going to raise, which is that I too saw the “social contract” premise in Amy’s second question. Dr. Binswanger’s post on the subject was recent and is still fresh in my mind,...
View ArticleBy: Roberto Sarrionandia
Interesting: Do you think jury duty differs from taxation? It seems that a court needs both money and jurors if we are to have any sort of right to a free trial. Regarding the more interesting point...
View ArticleBy: Santiago
I disagree that the issue is as complicated as you seem to think it is. In fact, I am surprised that people are having trouble with this at all, since the arguments for it seemed so clearly just minor...
View ArticleBy: KPOM
Carl, what is your opinion of the voluntary “peer judge” system in place in Sweden? Could that be a viable alternative to a compulsory jury system?
View ArticleBy: apeikoff
Did Dr. Binswanger’s post deal specifically with the questions of juries, or just social contract theory more generally? Since I’m not a subscriber to his list, I haven’t read it. What I am trying to...
View ArticleBy: Jason Goldsmith
There shouldn’t be an absolute right to a jury trial. If there’s no jury, then a judge will have to make his own decision in the case, and maybe judges should be making more decisions instead of juries...
View ArticleBy: John P. McCaskey
Did Ayn Rand say or write anything about jury duty? I’d have presumed she meant to include it in “the law courts” and “[citizens’] ‘government obligations’” in the essay “Government Financing in a Free...
View ArticleBy: JimWoods
DH’s conclusions on jury service and her separate conclusion against publicly paid defense counsels for indigent defendants reflect her not considering these trial issues in the context of the...
View ArticleBy: On Jury Service
[...] Peikoff provided an analysis of Diana Hsieh’s podcast statement (starts at 28:13) that Hsieh’s view on jury duty was [...]
View ArticleBy: Jim May
Amy: Regarding the subpoena power: the key differentiation between jury duty and the subpoena power is similar to why I said that Carl Svanberg’s parenthood analogy doesn’t apply: there is a clear...
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By: Jim May
I do agree that as it stands now, they have to draw from a pool of peers, and with the payment for jury duty being so low, it comes across as force. Assessing “forcibility” is not contingent on the...
View ArticleBy: apeikoff
What I need to think about more, and won’t be able to do for several hours (and perhaps a few days, because I have a stack of exams to grade) is whether there is an objective reason to summon a jury of...
View ArticleBy: apeikoff
That’s how I took it, Roberto. But I left it for people to listen to the segments and decide for themselves.
View ArticleBy: Jim May
A thought occurs to me: a premise that needs checking is the idea of “a right to a jury trial“, where it is a jury of one’s peers etc. As I understand it, the actual right involved is the right to...
View ArticleBy: Jason Goldsmith
Yes, this is a good thought. A right to a jury trial, or food, or whatever, is incorrect. I made a similar argument in a comment on this thread: http://dontletitgo.com/2011/05/21/jury-duty/#comment-822
View ArticleBy: Thomas M. Miovas, Jr.
This forum set-up is not very good for finding specific replies to specific posts, so Amy, if you are going to set up a discussion forum in the future, I’d recommend something other than the current...
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By: apeikoff
“This forum set-up is not very good for finding specific replies to specific posts, so Amy, if you are going to set up a discussion forum in the future, I’d recommend something other than the current...
View ArticleBy: Jim May
Amy: My apologies, I should have made clear that my defense of Diana against the “rationalism” charge is directed to others in this thread. (Fred Wiess, I’m looking at YOU.) I understand and await your...
View ArticleBy: Joe
Regardless of which position on jury duty is correct, I thought the Noodlecast hosts were rude and disrespectful towards LP: “…[LP's] answer, which *really* shocked me I have to say…” [29:00] “this is...
View ArticleBy: Roberto Sarrionandia
I’ve outlined some thoughts on politeness in intellectual disputes here: http://sarrionandia.com/blog/?p=252
View ArticleBy: Carl Svanberg
Another observation I made some time ago. James Madison once said: “Trial by jury cannot be considered as a natural right, but a right resulting from a social compact which regulates the action of the...
View ArticleBy: Ashley
I like the idea that those who insist on the criminal trial, having had due process and having been found guilty, ought to pay something of the expense of the trial. However, if you pay jurors out of...
View ArticleBy: Ashley
You are right that the jury trial per se is not the right, but the right to due process under the law. However, the jury trial is simply the method our Anglo-Saxon ancestors hit upon, going clear back...
View ArticleBy: Ryan Jamieson
I enjoyed and agreed with some of the points and issues raised here by the participants. Here are some questions I think relevant to resolving the issue. 1.) If you were personally accused of a serious...
View ArticleBy: Daniel Casper
This is a cross-post, but I wanted to throw in my two cents. Let’s compare it to taxation. In a truly free society, taxation would be voluntary (cf Ayn Rand). The corollary of this would be that all...
View ArticleBy: Sajid Anjum
I left the following comment on Diana Hsieh’s blog (where I post frequently). I thought I would cross post here since there are some really well thought out comments here and it would be nice to be...
View ArticleBy: Chris Huff
The problem with this is that one chooses to have children, but one does not choose to be born in a country. The social contract is not based on Objectivist principles.
View ArticleBy: apeikoff
One does not choose to be born in a country, but once one is living in a country, he will be subject to the jurisdiction of that country’s government. Which means he might be accused of a crime and...
View ArticleBy: G
I live in Arizona, I got my second summons to jury duty, after first receiving a failure to appear card in the mail. I don’t want to do this, I’ve never been to a court house in my life nor have been...
View ArticleBy: Bob Gifford
Here I am, late to the party again. I seem to find these things long after the group has moved on, much like finding the hot night spot or the popular restaurant. But, as I read Amy’s excellent post,...
View ArticleBy: apeikoff
Yes, Bob, jurors are selected from registered voters in many/most (?) jurisdictions, and registering to vote is what I had in mind as constituting consent to be part of the jury pool. (Although, I,...
View ArticleBy: Bob Gifford
I am viewing voting as a significant responsibility. Today it is viewed sort of like the action of th flash-mobs that are attacking convenience stores lately. “Vote for this guy and get goodies.”...
View ArticleBy: Alexander Marriott
The question was posed somewhere above about whether AR ever spoke to this issue. I cannot pretend to have a good answer for that in terms of her public comments and non-fiction writing (while I have...
View ArticleBy: Mark Wallace
While I agree with Amy that jury service will never rise to the level of a PROFESSION, my own limited participation has left me convinced that a strong case can be made for treating it as a TRADE....
View ArticleBy: jonathanconway
Not sure if this idea has been raised yet but here goes. The government could offer all citizens of adult age a written contract, which they may voluntarily choose to sign or not to sign. The contract...
View ArticleBy: timthinkingman
Compulsory participation with the option of paying a fine is still a serious imposition despite this being a civic duty. “Choose” to live under a government…that’s funny talk. Look into the process of...
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