07-10-2013, 08:30 PM
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Purveyor, Fine Asian Porn
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Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: San Francisco Bay Area
Posts: 38,323
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A recent poll indicated that 40% of the potential jurors would draw a negative inference from the defendant?s refusal to testify (National Legal Aid and Defender Association, 1998).
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In a criminal trial, it is difficult to imagine a witness whose testimony would be more important to a juror than the defendant.
A defendant who does not take the stand deprives jurors of the opportunity to evaluate his or her conduct, demeanor, and credibility.
In the absence of the defendant?s testimony, jurors will fill in the blanks, often making assumptions that can be more detrimental to the defendant?s case than the truth would have been.
Jurors take their duties seriously and want to make informed decisions; if they feel that a defendant is interfering with their ability to do so, they could very well hold this against him or her.
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