Which tactic allows an attorney to remove a juror without stating a reason?

Which tactic allows an attorney to remove a juror without stating a reason?

• A. Peremptory Challenge
• B. Double Jeopardy
• C. Equality of Opportunity
• D. Affirmative Action

Answer: (A)

Peremptory challenges are a tool in jury selection that lets each side strike a potential juror without having to give a reason. This allows attorneys to shape the jury based on their impressions of how a juror might decide the case, within limits. Challenges for cause, by contrast, require a stated reason showing why a juror cannot be impartial, and the judge must agree. While peremptory challenges exist to help ensure a fair panel, they are not meant to be used to discriminate; the law now prohibits removing jurors based on protected characteristics, though the basic idea remains: no justification is required at the moment of removal. The other terms don’t fit because double jeopardy concerns trying someone twice for the same crime, not selecting jurors; equality of opportunity and affirmative action deal with broad civil rights and policy aims, not the specific jury selection tool that allows removing a juror without explanation.

Peremptory challenges are a tool in jury selection that lets each side strike a potential juror without having to give a reason. This allows attorneys to shape the jury based on their impressions of how a juror might decide the case, within limits. Challenges for cause, by contrast, require a stated reason showing why a juror cannot be impartial, and the judge must agree. While peremptory challenges exist to help ensure a fair panel, they are not meant to be used to discriminate; the law now prohibits removing jurors based on protected characteristics, though the basic idea remains: no justification is required at the moment of removal.

The other terms don’t fit because double jeopardy concerns trying someone twice for the same crime, not selecting jurors; equality of opportunity and affirmative action deal with broad civil rights and policy aims, not the specific jury selection tool that allows removing a juror without explanation.