Jury trial lawyer in Georgia — from jury selection to the verdict

A jury consists of 12 jurors and 2 alternate jurors, except in cases provided for by the Code; there must be at least 6 jurors in cases of less grave crimes, 8 in grave crimes and 10 in especially grave crimes (Criminal Procedure Code, Article 27). The jurors decide the facts — whether the accused is guilty; legal questions and the sentence are decided by the presiding judge (Articles 261 and 265).

Defence is mandatory in such a case — the accused must have a lawyer (Article 45, sub-paragraph "z").

Which cases are heard by a jury

Under Article 226 of the Criminal Procedure Code, a jury hears the case if the charge is brought under the following articles of the Criminal Code:

• Intentional murder (Article 108, completed).
• Intentional murder under aggravating circumstances (Article 109, completed).
• Intentional grievous bodily harm that caused death (Article 117, parts 2 and 4).
• Systematic violence under aggravating circumstances (Article 126, part 2).
• Trafficking in human organs, tissues or cells (Article 135¹).
• Unlawful deprivation of liberty under aggravating circumstances (Article 143, parts 2–4).
• Hostage-taking, torture and threat of torture (Articles 144–144²).
• Degrading or inhuman treatment under aggravating circumstances (Article 144³, part 2).
• Knowingly bringing an innocent person to criminal liability, combined with a charge of a grave or especially grave crime (Article 146, part 2).
• Intentional unlawful arrest or detention (Article 147).
• Unlawful placement or holding in a psychiatric hospital (Article 149).
• Falsification of goods that resulted in death or other grave consequences (Article 197, part 4).
• Making, importing or selling products dangerous to human life or health that caused death or other grave consequences (Article 198, part 3).
• Explosion (Article 229).

Can the case be heard without a jury?

Yes. The accused has the right to ask for the case to be heard without a jury — it is then heard by a judge of the district (city) court (Article 226, part 2). If the accused evades appearing in court, the case is heard in their absence, without a jury (Article 22, part 9).

Jury selection and challenges

• The judge picks candidates at random from the unified list of citizens aged 18 and over — no more than 300 people. Candidates are sent a questionnaire in advance, and the judge passes the completed questionnaires to the parties within 5 days of receiving them (Article 221).
• At the selection hearing the parties can put questions to the candidates (Article 223, part 2).
• There is no limit on challenges for cause (Article 223, part 1).
• Peremptory challenges (without giving a reason) — 10 if the charge carries life imprisonment, otherwise 6 (Article 223, part 10).

What the jury is not told

Before the verdict, the jury must not be told about the accused's previous convictions or earlier criminal or administrative liability, unless this is an element of the charge or is used to test the credibility of the accused's testimony (Article 238).

The verdict

• The jury reaches its verdict unanimously (Article 261, part 3).
• If they cannot agree unanimously within 4 hours, over the next 8 hours a majority decides: 8 votes with 11 or 12 jurors, 7 with 10, 6 with 9, 5 with 8, and 4 with 7 or 6 jurors (Article 261, part 4).
• If they cannot agree within that time either, the presiding judge explains the meaning of the verdict once more, asks the foreperson whether any juror refuses to take part in the deliberations or has an interest in the case that was not disclosed during selection, and sends the jurors back to the deliberation room (Article 261, part 5). If they still cannot reach a verdict within the next 3 hours, the judge either gives them additional reasonable time or dismisses the whole jury and sets a hearing to select a new one. If the new jury also cannot reach a verdict, the accused is deemed acquitted (Article 261, part 6).
• The presiding judge can set aside a guilty verdict if it clearly contradicts the evidence as a whole, is unfounded and setting it aside is the only way to deliver fair justice; the judge cannot do so merely because they disagree with how the jury weighed a witness's testimony or a piece of evidence (Article 261, part 7).

Appealing the judgment

A jury's acquittal is final and cannot be appealed. A conviction can be appealed once to the Court of Appeals under the cassation procedure — only on grounds listed in the law: for example, an unlawful decision on the admissibility of evidence, a substantial error in the presiding judge's instructions to the jury, or an unlawful or clearly unjustified sentence (Article 266).