The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution gives you the right to a fair trial if you are being accused of a crime. The elements of a fair trial are many, but one of them is an impartial jury. Oklahoma takes the right to a jury trial even more seriously than most other states. In some states, a jury trial is only a fundamental right if you are being charged with a felony, but jury trials are also the default option for misdemeanor cases in Oklahoma. The only difference is that, in a misdemeanor case, there are six jurors, whereas there are 12 jurors in a felony case. It is also possible in Oklahoma to have a criminal trial with no jury, and sometimes the decision to proceed to this kind of trial comes from the defendant. A Tulsa criminal defense lawyer can help you get a fair trial, with or without a jury.

When the Judge Decides the Verdict Instead of the Jury

A trial without a jury is called a bench trial. The bench in this context is the judge’s bench, just like, when a judge issues a warrant for someone’s arrest, it is called a bench warrant. At a bench trial, both sides present their cases before the judge; if applicable, they show exhibits and summon witnesses, whom both sides’ lawyers cross-examine. At the end, the judge announces his or her decision. In most civil litigation, trials are bench trials; jury trials are the exception rather than the rule in civil court.

Bench trials are also an option in criminal court. Jury trials are the default option in criminal cases, but the case can culminate in a bench trial instead of a jury trial if both the prosecution and the defense agree that holding a bench trial would be in the interest of justice. You might wonder why defendants would place their fate in the hands of one person instead of twelve when, at a jury trial, all you have to do to get acquitted is to instill reasonable doubt, and you can get a mistrial instead of a conviction if you can instill serious doubt in one juror even if the other 11 are sure you are guilty.

When defendants opt for a bench trial, sometimes it is because they think that jury impartiality is impossible if their case, or another case similar to it, has received constant media coverage. Another reason for preferring a bench trial is if the defense’s strategy rests on a complex legal argument that the defendant’s lawyers do not think the jury will understand, or if the defense is worried that the prosecution will try to confuse or mislead the jury about the legal issues.

Contact Tracy Tiernan About Criminal Defense Cases

A criminal defense lawyer can help you protect your rights during a bench trial or before a jury of your peers.  Contact Tracy Tiernan in Tulsa, Oklahoma to discuss your case.