Learn About Jury Service | United States Courts I knew that the SFPD drug lab was shut down, and it had to be shipped to San Mateo County for testing, but since the transportation and testing process was done properly, I believed the narcotics are for real and was not tampered with. The District Attorney's case was really strong and he had a lot of strong and credible evidence to back it up. (The lawyers have a right to object to these questions, just as they do to questions posed by lawyers during the trial.) Alternate juror Carolina Cabrera describing Franklin. In her interview with Raguse, Christensen explained that the jurors, even when talking amongst themselves, identified themselves only by their assigned numbers. A juror spent months hearing about a serial killer's grisly acts. Not what do alternate jurors do during deliberations LET US HELP YOU KICK OFF YOUR PROJECT IMMEDIATELY Replacing a Juror After Deliberations Begin | UNC School of Government the case while the jury decides the facts. I could hear everything, Christensen said. Cabreras frustration mirrors that of many who serve as alternates: These understudies must be as attentive as any other juror during the trial, but they face crashing boredom once deliberations begin. If either lawyer believes there is information that suggests a juror is prejudiced about the case, he or she can ask the judge to dismiss that juror An emergency is not the only thing that might occur. She admitted that she could not absorb the governing law that the judge provided, and she merely felt that Chauvin was guilty on some level she could be no more specific. 15. An alternate juror is a spare, not unlike the spare tire for your car that rides along with you wherever you drive but is only used if one of your regular tires fails. The number of jurors in a trial can vary, but the exact number required for a particular case must sit through the entire trial, hear all the evidence and arguments presented, and then determine the facts in dispute. >>Civil and Criminal Trials My heart broke a little when [the judge] turned and said, Number 96, youre an alternate, she told KARE. The lawyers took careful notes about each person and asked more detailed questions which related to the case. General Mills is issuing a recall for some brands of its flour amid a salmonella outbreak that has been linked to flour. They generally do not have the right to ask questions of witnesses, but some judges permit jurors to submit written questions for the judge and lawyers to consider. 270.30 Trial jury; alternate jurors. As the regular jurors headed to the jury room to begin talking, Cabrera and other alternates were sent out of the courtroom with a warning: Dont talk about the case, dont decide how youd vote, dont form opinions. I spent three weeks of my time, getting invested and going through all kinds of emotions. Clarification (March 22, 2021): This story has been updated to make clear that while the last jurors chosen for a panel typically serve as alternates, the court has not specified whether that will be the case in Derek Chauvins trial.