Anatomy of a Jury, by Seymor Wishman

Anatomy of A Jury, by Seymor Wishman

Penguin Group, 6/28/1987,336 pages

Reviews by: John Daoud

Seymour Wishman has a history of knowledge in law, being a former lawyer. He has advanced knowledge in law and his written more than one book about the law system. The purpose of this book is to explain the purpose of the lawyer, juries, prosecutor, and defendant and how each play a role in the court room. The audience in this book seems to be general and not geared to anyone specifically. The audience can be seen as the general reader of this book. The author wants the reader to know the process involved in choosing a jury.

The first part of the book the author begins to portay a crime that has happened. The crime is in the form of a murder of a woman named Mrs. Collins. She was found dead in her house by her son. The man accused was a male of Africa American descent named Mr. Rafshoon. Mr. Rafshoon's job was to take care of Mrs. Collins. Mr. Rafshoon is taken to prison, however he has a defense lawyer named Mike Bernestein who is assigned to him without choice on his part.

The book then goes on to talk about the process of selecting a Jury. The author connects the reader to the process more clearly by using actual situations that have happened in the past that deal with selecting a Jury. The lawyers in the book are responsible for selecting the jury. The lawyers could dismiss a jury for any reason they choose. The Jury must be knowledgeable, full of confidence, and have good character. However, not all lawyers look at these characteristics when eliminating or choosing a Jury. Some can be biased and dismiss based on other reasons.

The next section of the book is about the actual trial. The author becomes more descriptive and talks about the inner thoughts of the people in the courtroom. Wishman goes into the thoughts of the lawyers and juries to connect the reader better with the trial. The author engages the reader in the trial so that the reader can also form perspectives and decisions. The author is unbiased and gives both the defendant and prosecutor's perspectives. The author also goes back and gives actual situations he knows about that were similar to this one to help the reader connect with the trial.

The last part of the book is the final outcome to be made based on the decision of the courtroom. The innocence or guilt of Mr. Rafshoon will finally be announced. This outcome will deeply affect the life of Mr. Rafshoon and therefore the juries carefully analyze and gather the evidence to make a final decision. They finally came to the conclusion that Mr. Rafshoon was not guilty. This conclusion was based on heavily analyzing the evidence presented and the case was taken seriously.