Celebrating Juror Appreciation Week: Real decisions

Keegan Tinney is a partner at Dreyer & Tinney in Joplin. A graduate of the University of Missouri – Kansas City School of Law, he represents District 5 on The Missouri Bar Board of Governors.

Jurors decide the ultimate outcome of a case. These outcomes affect people’s freedom, reputations, and rights. Jurors make real decisions every day in courtrooms across the state that make or break cases and decide who wins or loses. Understanding the decisions they make helps clarify the weight of their responsibility and how they can carry out that responsibility in a fair manner. 

In celebration of Juror Appreciation Week, let’s take a minute to recognize the contributions of juries - and the real people, decisions, and impact behind them. Juror Appreciation Week is April 26-May 2, and it serves as an opportunity to honor Missourians who have performed this civic duty in the last year.

When a juror comes into the courtroom, they must decide whether to serve, and if they choose to serve, how to approach their role as one of 12 jurors. Jurors must make this decision conscientiously, and it is the  lawyer’s role to help them arrive at this decision during voir dire (jury selection). They must disclose any personal obligations that may conflict with the trial and any biases they may have. 

As the trial begins, jurors must assess witness credibility and evaluate evidence in determining the facts. They must evaluate the witnesses’ truthfulness and reliability. Jurors generally consider demeanor, consistency, possible motives to lie, accuracy of memory, and corroboration in assessing witness testimony. They must reconcile conflicting testimonies, physical evidence, timelines, and expert opinions. Jurors must make these decisions based upon admitted evidence only.   

Jurors must apply burdens of proof, decide whether elements have been proven, and determine causation in civil cases. In criminal cases, the jurors must decide whether the prosecution demonstrated guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, or in civil cases met the lower required standards. The jury instructions are guides to help jurors make decisions. Lawyers use closing arguments to help the jury through this process and try to persuade the jury to make decisions favorable to their cases. 

The jurors take the decisions they made throughout the trial into deliberation to make their ultimate decision. Jurors must accurately apply findings to each count or claim, decide on lesser-included offenses if appropriate, and adhere to required unanimity or majority rules requirements. Jurors may have to make decisions on damages or sentencing outcomes. Some jurors must even decide if a defendant is to live or die in capital punishment cases.  

Jurors make a chain of consequential decisions. Every juror’s decisions — from serving to evaluating evidence to applying legal standards and deliberating — shape justice. Understanding what decisions jurors must make helps lawyers in preparing their cases. Awareness of these responsibilities supports fair, thoughtful verdicts and preserves public confidence in the legal system.