In England, how many people usually sit on a criminal jury?

A jury is a group of ordinary citizens who give an impartial verdict to a criminal or civil court case. This usually involves determining whether a person is guilty or innocent of committing a crime. A jury may also be responsible for deciding the penalty for the guilty person.

In England, a jury is made up of 12 people (jurors) for criminal cases, although may only have 10 people for civil cases. People are selected at random and must be British citizens with no criminal record. Members are chosen from the electoral register for their local area and those chosen are obliged to attend jury duty. The jurors are not paid to attend but can claim some money back if their earnings are affected.

In the United States, a 'grand jury' is called upon to give a verdict at criminal court cases. Grand juries are also made up of 12 people. For non-criminal cases, a 'petit jury' is made up of between 6 to 12 jurors. The jurors are paid a small amount for their service.

Normally, all members of the jury have to agree on the decision, but sometimes, they can still make a decision even if a few members do not agree. If the jury is clearly divided, the result is known as a 'hung jury' and the case is not decided. If this happens, the judge may declare a mistrial.