NEW 19 OCTOBER 2010

1.1   DIRECTION TO THE JURY AT THE BEGINNING OF THE TRIAL NOT TO DISCUSS THE CASE WITH ANYONE OUTSIDE THE JURY ROOM OR TO GO ON THE INTERNET

"As you have undertaken to do by your oaths and affirmation(s) you must decide this case only on the evidence and the arguments that you hear in court, and not on anything you may have seen, or heard, or read, or may see, hear, or read outside the court.

During the trial you will hear all of the evidence, and the relevant law, that you need in order to reach your verdict. It is wrong for any juror to seek, or to receive, further evidence or information of any sort about the case, whether by speaking to anyone about it, or engaging in private research on the internet or anywhere else. That is because that could result in your considering material that has nothing to do with this case, and which neither the prosecution or the defence know about. That would be unjust because it would be unfair to them.

You must not talk to anyone about the case, save to the other members of the jury and then only when all twelve of you are deliberating in the jury room. You should not discuss the case amongst yourselves as the trial proceeds because you will not hear all of the evidence, and what counsel and myself say to you about it and the relevant law, until you retire to consider your verdict. If you discuss the case amongst yourselves before you retire to consider your verdict(s) there is a danger that you might make up your minds about something without realising that there is more evidence to come about that point.

You must not allow anyone to talk to you about the case unless that person is a juror and he or she is in the jury room deliberating about the case, and that includes discussing the case, or describing what is happening in the case, on the internet on a social network site such as Facebook, Twitter or anything else.

There have been cases where jurors have, quite wrongly, tried to do their own research, or discussed the case with their friends, online, and by doing so they create a real risk that a juror will be influenced by something he or she has been told outside the trial that no one knows about, and so will influence their colleagues, and that could imperil the trial. Therefore jurors are told in all trials not to do any of these things.

As in virtually every trial there will be times when you have to leave the court, either because a matter of law is being discussed, or because the trial is continuing on another day. When you leave the court you should try to set this case on one side until you return to court.”

NOTE.

(1)   This direction should be given as soon as the jury is empanelled, or on the first occasion when the jury separates during the trial itself, particularly if the case is one which has been, or may be, the subject of media reports and/or comments.

(2)   In R v Oliver [1996] 2 Cr. App. R. at pp 520-521 the Court of Appeal suggested a form of words that is the basis for Specimen Direction 6.2. The Court also said:

"It is not necessary for the judge to use any precise form of words provided that the matters set out above are properly covered in whatever words he chooses to use. We consider it would be desirable for this direction to be given in full on the first dispersal of the jury and a brief reminder to be given at each subsequent dispersal.

Finally, we would add that there may be particular circumstances in a particular case when it is appropriate for a judge to give further or other directions. It is not possible for this Court to anticipate every factual situation that may arise. It will not be in every case where these directions are not given that it will amount to a material irregularity. We enumerate these four points only for guidance to judges in future cases."

(3)   The reference to the internet has been included to try to avert the dangers identified by Lord Judge CJ in R v Thompson & ors [2010] EWCA 1623.

ARCHBOLD 2010: 4-425

BLACKSTONE 2010: D18.8