French jurors facing the Jury Court : portraits and description of a remarkable experience
Résumé
Every year in France, about 20000 citizens have to report for jury duty. The announcement of
their designation represents the beginning of an experience marked by the discovery of a new
world in which they have to construct a role they are hardly prepared. How they imagine in
anticipation this original role ? And how those which have really accomplished it, experienced
their participation in the assizes court and its effects ? This communication pretends to respond
to these questions focusing the french juror’s experience, their social and subjective issues. It
is based on the results of a research conducted in the North of France, mixing observation,
interviews and questionnaires.