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Protecting the right to a jury trial: A recent Supreme Court decision is a victory for defendants' rights

Date: August 1, 2004
Author: Prof. Robert Hardaway
QUOTE: Why civil plaintiffs seeking money damages should have the right to a jury in the second phase of their trials, but criminal defendants, possibly facing a lifetime in prison, should not, has never been satisfactorily explained.

ABSTRACT: The recent Supreme Court decision that struck down nearly two decades of precident set by Federal Sentencing Guidelines used since the early 1980s will introduce one key aspect of American justice back into the civilian courts that has been used for years in military courts - the sixth amendment - which this columnist believes brings a greater sense of fairness to the United States legal system.

--- Nathan Hurst

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