Jury Instructions
In California drunk driving trials and all other criminal cases, jurors take an oath to follow the law. The law in each particular criminal case is given to jurors in the form of jury instructions. The judge usually reads the instructions aloud and also gives the jurors a copy. Whether the instructions are issued before attorneys’ closing arguments or just before the jury retires to deliberate depends on the preference of the judge.
In California, the instructions issued in criminal trials are from CALJIC, or California Jury Instructions, Criminal. In addition to the CALJIC instructions, the attorneys for both sides can submit their own proposed jury instructions tailored to the specific facts of their cases. A skilled California DUI / DWI lawyer from The Kavinoky Law Firm will submit instructions designed to advance the client’s case.
The judge and attorneys will discuss the proposed instructions outside the presence of the jury. The prosecutor typically seeks instructions that are objectionable to the defense, and vice-versa. Each side presents arguments in regard to the instructions, and the judge rules on the final version.
One very important jury instruction that skilled California DUI / DWI defense lawyers rely upon is CALJIC No. 224 on circumstantial evidence. It reads as follows:
Circumstantial Evidence: Sufficiency of Evidence
Before you may rely on circumstantial evidence to conclude that a fact necessary to find the defendant guilty has been proved, you must be convinced that the People have proved each fact essential to that conclusion beyond a reasonable doubt. Also, before you may rely on circumstantial evidence to find the defendant guilty, you must be convinced that the only reasonable conclusion supported by the circumstantial evidence is that the defendant is guilty. If you can draw two or more reasonable conclusions from the circumstantial evidence, and one of those reasonable conclusions points to innocence and another to guilt, you must accept the one that points to innocence. However, when considering circumstantial evidence, you must accept only reasonable conclusions and reject any that are unreasonable.
This instruction states that in cases supported by circumstantial evidence, the prosecution has the burden of proving each element of the case beyond a reasonable doubt, and if the circumstantial evidence points to more than one conclusion, the jury must accept the one that points to the defendant’s innocence.
This particular part of the jury instructions can be employed to cast doubt on every single item of circumstantial evidence in the prosecutor’s case. A knowledgeable California DUI / DWI defense lawyer will submit jury instructions designed to help the accused drunk driver advance his or her case and point jurors toward a verdict of not guilty.
