Juries banned from using internet to research cases

Jurors in criminal trials should be banned from using the internet to research their cases, the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales has said. Issuing new guidance at the Court of Appeal, Lord Justice Judge said a "polite request" to jurors not to browse the web was not enough. He said using the material to help make decisions could result in a conviction being quashed. He said guidance about web use "must" be given at the outset of a trial. Lord Judge made his comments in a judgement relating to six appeals in which there had been allegations of jury irregularities. He said that web use was so common that specific guidance had to be given and that jurors had to understand that "although the internet is part of their daily lives, the case must not be researched there".

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-10634238