我不会再放弃做陪审员的机会

在民主社会里，履行陪审员义务是公民的神圣职责。接受陪审团审判的权利是加拿大司法体系的基石，也是加国宪法权利的根本保障。

 

In a democratic society, jury duty is a citizen’s sacred obligation. The right to be judged by a jury of one’s peers is the bedrock of the Canadian judiciary system. It is the ultimate safeguard of our nations’ constitutional rights. 

 

陪审员必需在法庭指导下依据事实作出裁决。在加拿大，陪审团候选人是从普通公民中随机抽选，而每宗案件（民事或刑事案件）的陪审员则是由检察官、律师和法官根据候选人的能力和案件性质从陪审团候选人中选出。

Jurors are required to determine the facts and render a verdict in accordance with court instructions. In Canada, citizens were randomly selected into a jury pool, and the jurors for each trial (civil or criminal) will be chosen from the jury pool by prosecutors, lawyers and judges, based on their competency and suitability. 

 

在几年前，我曾奉召履行陪审义务。在一个周一的早晨，我按照指示抵达市中心法院，成为陪审团候选人之一，当时和我一起坐在大法庭里等待甄选的还有其他一百多名陪审员候选人。但是由于对这项公民义务不甚了解，我当时完全被吓懵了。在我以经济负担和健康不佳等理由寻求豁免陪审义务后，我很快获准离开。

Several years ago, I was summoned to a jury duty. On a Monday morning, I arrived at University courthouse as instructed, becoming a member of jury pool. I stayed in a large courtroom with over a hundred of potential jurors waiting to be selected. But with a limited knowledge about this civic duty, I freaked out. I was quickly dismissed after I had sought exemption for several reasons – from financial burdens to poor health conditions. 

 

但是直到我对这项公民义务有了更多了解后，我才知道自己错过了什么。

But not until I had more knowledge about this civilian’s obligation, I didn’t know what I had missed. 

 

履行陪审义务可能会让许多人望而生畏。在庭审期间，陪审员必需一连数周乃至数月坐在法庭里审视证据和进行讨论，直至作出判决。这是一项冗长乏味的工作，由于期间会出现推迟开庭、提前闭庭、 频繁延误和令人无法忍受的漫长休庭等情况，陪审员每天可能只能听取数小时证词和庭辩。

Jury duty could be intimidating experience for many people. Jurors are required to sit in the courtrooms during a trial to examine evidence and to deliberate for weeks and even months on end to reach a verdict.  It is a tedious job. Between the late starts, early dismissals, frequent delays and insufferably long recesses, jurors probably spent only a few hours listening to testimony and arguments on any given day.

 

对于许多陪审员来说，审议过程也会给造成陪审员情绪波动，并给他们带来很大精神压力。

For many jurors, jury deliberation could also be a nerve wracking experience, and an emotional roller coaster. 

 

此外，一些 形象、恐怖及那些令人震惊和不安的证据可能也会让许多人望而却步。因残杀中国留学生林俊而被定罪的马尼奥塔的审判案举世瞩目，而在马尼奥塔谋杀审判的陪审团甄选过程中，就有数名陪审团候选人因被惨不忍睹的证据所赫而申请豁免。

The graphic, gruesome and potentially upsetting evidence could be frightening. In jury selection process of the high profile trial of Lukka Magnotta -- the convicted killer of Chinese student Lin Jun, several juror candidates were scared off by the disturbing evidence and begged off. 

 

有些陪审团审议结果也会令人大失所望。因在1980年代谋杀和肢解其中国留学生女友沈镰而被定罪的潘瑞文，其谋杀审判经历了马拉松式的诉讼博弈，直到第三次审判后潘才被定罪。在第一次审判中陪审团因意见不一未能定罪；在第二次审判中，一名陪审员递条告知法官其他陪审员对她施加压力而导致法庭宣布审判无效。

Some jury deliberation can turn ugly.  Rui Wen pan, who was convicted for killing and dismemberment of his girlfriend – Chinese student Selina Shen in the 1980s, had gone through a marathon legal proceeding during his murder trials. Pan hadn’t been convicted until after the third trial. The first ended in hung jury. The second was declared a mistrial after a juror sent judge a note alleging that she was under pressure from other jurors. 

 

但尽管如此，陪审员是一个非常具有意义且一生难求的人生经历，许多人从履行陪审义务的过程中获益匪浅。一名刑事律师在接受CBC新闻采访时就表示，许多参加过陪审团的人士几乎一致认为这是他们最精彩的人生经历之一。

Nonetheless, jury duties could turn out to be a rewarding and a life-time experience that is enjoyed by many people. According to a criminal lawyer interviewed by CBC story, many people sat on juries have almost uniformly found it to be one of the greatest experiences that they've gone through as an individual.

 

在担任陪审员后，你将享有聆听和审视那些经过精心策划并呈堂的证词和证据的特权。在陪审员带着裁决结果返回陪审席时，他们将吸引全法庭的关注，包括原告、被告、辩护律师和所涉家庭。而在这一瞬间，法庭内会充满令人窒息的紧张气息。

As a juror, you have the privilege to hear and view the arguments and evidence that is deliberately planned and presented to you. When the jurors return to the jury box with the verdict, they would gather the attentions from everyone in the courtroom, including the prosecutions, the defendant, the defence attorney, and the families of those involved. At this moment, the courtroom is filled with overwhelming sense of tension.

 

在宣布判决结果时，陪审员会体验到前所未有的紧张与兴奋。他们的判决结果利害攸关： 它可让面临指控的被告脱罪，也可能彻底改变被告和家人的命运；它也可以帮受害者家属抚平伤痛，重新踏上生活征程。

When the verdict is read out in the courtroom, jurors could experience the biggest adrenaline rush they’ve ever felt.  The stakes are really high – their verdict can exonerate the person facing charges, or forever change the lives of the defendant and devastate his families. It could bring some closure to the victims’ loved ones. 

 

目前，多伦多警官弗西洛正因射杀18岁青年雅丁而面对谋杀审判，这场备受瞩目的庭审对于加国司法系统意义深远。随着公众和司法机构进一步加强对警察执法行为的审视，陪审团的裁决有可能改变那些因平民致死而面临指控的警官的命运。

As James Forcillo faces murder trials in the death of 18-year-old Sammy Yatim, the high profile trial marks historical moment in Canada. Amid a growing public and judiciary scrutiny of police actions, the jury’s verdict can be a game changer for police officers facing charges in the death of civilians. 

 

对于加拿大新移民，尤其是来自陪审制度受限且陪审员无法独立行使审判权的国家的少数族裔移民来说，陪审义务堪称是最神圣的义务。

Jury duty is a most sacred obligation for new Canadians, particularly those from a country where the jury system is restricted and jurors are unable to perform the legal function independently.  

 

这也是令许多人为之向往的经历。如果我有幸再次入选，哪怕是承担经济损失也不会再放弃这一庄重而神圣职责。

It could also be fascinating experience for many. If I am lucky enough to be selected again, I would rather sacrifice financially to take on this incredibly sacred job one could ever imagine.