Potential juror in Zimmerman trial lied in court

[Nimajneb Nilknarf]

37. Culling of people who have already decided the case and unwilling or unable to change their minds

based on the evidence that actually gets presented in court is essential to the integrity of the process.

It is certain that not all of the potential evidence we have read and heard on TV, radio, and the Internet will be presented in the controlled environment of the trial. For example, evidence of Mr. Martin's drug use, affinity for firearms and underage girls, etc. are probably not germane to anything at issue, yet millions of people have had their opinions influenced by them. Someone who could not disregard that data, assuming that it won't be presented in court, would not make a good juror. Nor would someone who simply believes that Zimmerman is guilty based on demographics - A whitish adult man shot and killed an unarmed black teenager, and that's all I need to know (we read just that here on DU multiple times every day).

A good juror must be willing to listen carefully, able to take notes and retain information, and above all open to changing his or her opinion based on what the judge allows to be presented. Very few people don't have opinions about the case. The important thing for a juror is to be able to abandon an opinion when presented with convincing proof that it was not correct.