Judge or Jury Trial? What are the Stats? (7/20/12)

Parties in criminal trials should at least consider whether to exercise the right to trial by jury or have a trial to the judge instead.  I am aware of no hard and fast rules on when that is a good choice -- it is a judgment call in the final analysis.  Factors, obviously, include which judge (reading the tea leaves about a judge is not a precise art), costs (a judge trial is likely to be less costly than jury trials), no hung jury (although some may like the possibility), etc.)  I did recently find an article addressing the issue of a key factor -- statistical  outcomes -- that readers may find helpful.  The article apparently appeared in the Wall Street Journal, but is republished here:  Tamer El-Ghobashy, Judge's Acquit More Often Than Juries (Fordham University School of Law Newsroom 8/6/11), here.


The article is a good, quick read.  The article also discusses factors other than statistical outcomes.

The article uses as its centerpiece a case where the defense lawyer was Susan Hoffinger, an exceptional New York lawyer, whose bio is here.  I had the pleasure of working with Ms. Hoffinger and her father, Jack Hoffinger (bio here), in the KPMG-related criminal mega-case in NYC.  Jack is exceptional also.