The Verdict in Casey Anthony's Case is an Example of Verdicts that are Possible in Tampa Auto Accident Cases

The only Tampa injury lawyer who hasn't lost a jury verdict is the injury lawyer who doesn't try cases. Losing sometimes is inevitable regardless of the strength of your auto accident personal injury case. The verdict in the infamous Casey Anthony case is just one well known example where what seemed obvious to observers was not so obvious to the jury.  

The Casey Anthony trial is where a young mother was accused of killing her 2 year old daughter. The evidence of her guilt seemed overwhelming, but the jury nonetheless came to a not guilty verdict to the outrage of many observers. And in this particular case, the attorney representing Casey Anthony was not as experienced as the state's attorneys unlike the OJ Simpson verdict where Mr. Simpson was able to hire the very best defense.

Why do these things happen? Jurors are human beings. They are subject to the same prejudices and biases that all of us have. While an injury attorney will try to learn about these prejudices and biases during voir dire, a time a Tampa car accident attorney is given to interview potential jurors to determine which ones would be most appropriate to serve on the jury. The time given the Tampa auto accident attorney to ask their questions is limited and not everyone on the jury panel necessarily tells the truth or even understands their own biases. As a result, a jury panel may contain members who have already decided the case even before they hear any evidence in the case.

In addition, the rules of evidence may keep out very important evidence. Many people don't realize that Tampa auto accident attorneys are not allowed to show the jury any evidence they wish. All evidence must pass rigorous rules regarding its relevance and authenticity. In addition, evidence may be kept out for an assorted number of reasons. Cases are won and lost on crucial evidence and yet during the trial itself a Tampa car accident attorney may be told that the evidence may not be used.

That's one reason that while OJ was found not guilty in the criminal case against him, he was found guilty in the civil trial. It's certainly interesting to note how the same case heard by two different juries reached totally different conclusions. Certainly that goes back to the issue of jury biases and prejudices. But it also speaks to the issue of evidence. In the criminal trial certain evidence that was allowed in the civil trial was ruled inadmissible. We'll never know if the juries would have reached the same verdict had they heard the same evidence, but it's certainly an interesting question.

Also, jurors are told that during the course of the trial they are not to look or listen to anything regarding the case. In addition, they're not supposed to talk with anyone about the case or use the internet to look up information. They're not supposed to visit the scene of the crime or where the accident occurred. That's because they may be persuaded by what they see or hear. Also, some of what they learn may have been deemed inadmissible. But that doesn't stop curious jurors.

Imagine if you're injured in a Tampa car accident and your case has been brought before the jury. If one of the jurors goes home and does an interest search on the defendant, they might learn that they're involved in charity work in the community and/or that they are having economic difficulties, both things which are certainly not admissible as evidence in a trial. You can imagine that this information could certainly impact that jurors decision about whether to award you money for your injuries caused in a Tampa motor vehicle accident case or how much to award you.

What does this mean to you if you're injured in a Tampa auto accident? Tampa car accident attorneys will certainly tell you that while there are times a case must be tried; there is certainly great risk in taking a case to trial. If you can live with the settlement offered before trial in your Tampa auto accident case, it may make sense to accept the amount rather than risk going in front of a jury. Generally, the question you might ask yourself is whether you can live with the amount being offered before trial for your Tampa auto accident case.

Tampa injury law firms work hard to do the right thing by their clients. Often, when injury attorney in Tampa recommends settlement the client will believe that the attorney doesn't want to take on the risk of a jury verdict and that may be true. But also consider that that Tampa injury attorney may have seen their share of losses to juries in good strong cases through no fault of their own. With that in mind, the Tampa injury attorney may believe that settlement makes much more sense than risking the monies in a jury trial. At our Tampa injury law firm, we explain these issues to our injury clients so they can make the best decisions with regard to the case. If the injured client decides to move forward to trial we do our very best to obtain from the jury a favorable verdict and avoid the unfortunate results seen in the Casey Anthony case.

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