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3 NZWLJ 13 (2019)
Judging Juries: The Common Sense Conundrums of Prosecuting Violence against Women

handle is hein.journals/nzwomlj3 and id is 17 raw text is: 







                        JUDGING JURIES
    The common sense conundrums ofprosecuting violence
                           against women

                         Vanessa E Munro*


        The jury plays a pivotal role within many criminal justice
        systems. It has often been lauded for its unique ability to ensure
        the involvement of, and accountability to, members of the public
        in the application of criminal laws to citizens. At the same time,
        however, what goes on in the jury room has remained remarkably
        opaque. We know little about the nature and content of jury
        deliberations, about how legal tests are understood and applied
        therein, and about what persuasive strategies are most effective
        in securing a verdict. Over the past two decades, I - together
        with colleagues - have conducted several studies, using trial
        simulations, designed to explore jurors' approach to decision-
        making in rape cases. In this article, I reflect on the key findings
        from that work and situate them in the context of ongoing
        international dialogue about both how to respond to the 7justice
        gap in rape cases, and what to do about juries.


I INTRODUCTION
I want to begin by expressing my sincere thanks to the members of the Women
in Law Committee for inviting me to give this talk, to the New Zealand Law
Foundation and Borrin Foundation for funding my travel to be here, and to
Professor Elisabeth McDonald for including me in some fascinating discussions
during my visit about the future of sexual offences trials in New Zealand. I am
hugely honoured to be giving this year's Shirley Smith Address. It is a particular
treat to do so in the prestigious surrounds of this Parliament Building and in

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