High court says judge erred in trying to ‘rehabilitate’ juror

Trial Notebook

By Steven P. Garmisa

Hoey & Farina

Posted April 18, 2024 11:17 AM

Updated April 18, 2024 3:20 PM

Guided by the principle that the purpose of voir dire is “investigation, not persuasion” — and bolstered by scholarly commentary that included a 2023 Chicago-Kent Law Review article — the Oregon Supreme Court critiqued a judge’s efforts to “rehabilitate” a prospective juror.Juror 155 initially said she did not think she could be fair and impartial in a case where the defendant was accused of rape, sodomy and sexual abuse of his domestic partner.When the judge read the charges against Julio Cesar Villeda and asked whether …

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