The Jury and Democracy: How Jury Deliberation Promotes Civic Engagement and Political Participation
"Written in engaging prose without sacrificing analytical rigor, this book is a must-read for scholars and students of the American jury system, as well as anyone interested in the effect that citizen participation in government institutions has on the strength of a democratic society." --HarvardLaw Review"This book has a profound message, and the message is backed up with solidly designed and implemented research...The authors bring several different disciplinary perspectives to their ground-breaking study...This is a provocative, well done examination of American juries that also evidences a deep understanding of the role juries have played and can play in American history. I recommend it to all scholars who study juries, the justice system, and American democracy." --Judicature"This profoundly important and highly readable book offers the most thorough examination yet of the impact of serving on a jury. Anyone who cares about how juries affect our democracy should read this book." --Valerie Hans, co-author ofAmerican Juriesand Professor of Law, Cornell University"Most people think citizenship begins with voting and ends with taxes. But jury service is in truth more critical to and definitive of democracy. In their rich study of the place of the jury in democracy, Gastil and his colleagues offer powerful evidence showing how jury service can create social capital and transform citizens. Their study is a persuasive portrait of juries but an equally compelling celebration of democracy's possibilities--a welcome riposte to the political cynicism of a polarized America." --Benjamin R. Barber, author ofStrong Democracyand Distinguished Senior Fellow, Demos"I have been waiting decades for a study like this. For the first time we have data on a large sample showing indisputably that taking civic responsibility in one realm promotes taking civil responsibility later in another. This groundbreaking, careful, and illuminating study is a must for anyone interested in what political theorists have long called the 'educative effects' of participation." --Jane Mansbridge, Adams Professor of Political Leadership and Democratic Values, Kennedy School, Harvard University"The Jury and Democracyis an ambitious book---it includes far more data, and suggestive arguments on the connections between the jury system, public engagement, and democracy than are possible to summarize here. ... It will be of interest to scholars of criminal justice and the sociology of law, as well as those more broadly concerned with civic engagement, the public sphere, and democratic theory." --Contemporary Sociology