| In most English-speaking countries, a person who is accused of a crime has the right to a “trial by jury”. |
| In a trial by jury, the guilt or innocence of the accused person |
| is decided by a group of 12 people, called jurors, |
| who must listen to the evidence about the case. |
| The idea of a trial by jury is over 800 years old, |
| but there was a time when criminal cases were decided in other ways. |
| Today, many of these methods seem ridiculous and cruel. |
| Many accused people were forced to undergo a trial by ordeal. |
| There were several different kinds of this trial. |
| For example, in the ordeal by fire, |
| an accused man was forced to carry a red-hot piece of iron in his hand. |
| People believed that if the man were innocent then the gods would protect him, |
| and his hand would not be burned or blistered by the iron. |
| Another form of the trial by ordeal was the ordeal by combat. |
| If one person accused another of a crime, |
| they would be forced to fight each other with some weapon. |
| People believed that the gods would help the man who was right |
| and allow him to win the fight. |
| Yet another kind of ordeal was the ordeal by water. |
| If a woman was accused of a crime, such as witchcraft, |
| she might be thrown into a river with rocks attached to her. |
| People believed that the gods would help an innocent woman and allow her to float on the water. |
| Gradually, people realized that the trial by ordeal was a completely worthless way to judge a person’s innocence or guilt. |
| They wanted a less barbaric way to decide criminal cases. |
| During the twelfth century, a new method was introduced by one of the kings of England, Henry the Second. |
| Henry said that criminal cases should be decided by the opinions of twelve honest men |
| who knew about the crime, the victim, and the accused person. |
| This was the beginning of trial by jury in English-speaking countries, |
| and the method soon became very popular. |
| People trusted this new method much more than they trusted the old methods. |
| Later, the system of trial by jury changed somewhat. |
| Instead of having a jury of twelve men and women who knew about the crime, |
| juries were chosen so that the twelve people did not know anything about the crime. |
| This change ensures that the jurors do not have any bias or prejudice about the case. |
| When jurors do not know any of the people involved in the case, |
| their decisions are more likely to be fair and accurate. |
| Today, citizens in many countries are called occasionally for jury duty. |
| This can be inconvenient for people who are busy with their work and family life. |
| However, many men and women are willing to serve on juries |
| because of a feeling of responsibility to society. |
| The use of juries in criminal cases helps to ensure that justice is done. |
More English listening lessons for intermediate level:
Lesson 53: African Slavery in the America
I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.