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Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams felt strongly that jury trials were the best defense against government. Thomas Jefferson considered "trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution." John Adams said it was a jury's "duty ... to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment, and conscience, though in direct opposition to the direction of the court."  In recent times, the right to trial by jury has been under attack in America, most notably in the [[Patriot act]] and the "war on terror", where the executive branch has argued that persons accused of terrorism are not guaranteed the right to a trial by jury.

Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams felt strongly that jury trials were the best defense against government. Thomas Jefferson considered "trial by jury as the only anchor ever yet imagined by man, by which a government can be held to the principles of its constitution." John Adams said it was a jury's "duty ... to find the verdict according to his own best understanding, judgment, and conscience, though in direct opposition to the direction of the court."  In recent times, the right to trial by jury has been under attack in America, most notably in the [[Patriot act]] and the "war on terror", where the executive branch has argued that persons accused of terrorism are not guaranteed the right to a trial by jury.

Taking a broad view of "jury" to include any panel of people (other than a judge) to pass judgment on an accused, here are the top ten most influential trials affecting American history:

Here are the list of influential jury trials affecting American history:

# [[William Penn]] (1670)

# [[William Penn]] (1670)

# [[John Peter Zenger]] (1735)

# [[John Peter Zenger]] (1735)

# [[Boss Tweed]] (1873)

# [[Boss Tweed]] (1873)

# [[Sacco and Vanzetti Trial|Sacco & Vanzetti]] (1921)

# [[Sacco and Vanzetti Trial|Sacco & Vanzetti]] (1921)

# [[Alger Hiss]] (1949)

# [[Alger Hiss]] (1949)

# O. J. Simpson (two trials)

# O. J. Simpson (two trials)

Half of these important trials resulted in convictions; the other half resulted in acquittals. Here is a summary of the cases and their influence:

Half of these important trials resulted in convictions; the other half resulted in acquittals. (A related topic is ''impeachment'', where the "jury" comprises the United States Senate, rather than a selection of randomly chosen citizens.  A summary of important impeachment trials can be found in the article on [[impeachment]].)  Here is a summary of the cases and their influence:

3. By 1804, Jeffersonian [[Democratic-Republicans]] had control of [[The United States Congress|Congress]] and set their sights on removing Federalist Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase. The House of Representatives impeached him, and trial began with the Senate as the jury. His prosecutor was [[John Randolph]], a partisan Jeffersonian who was distantly related to the Federalist Chief Justice [[John Marshall]]. 25 out of 34 Senators were Jeffersonians, so conviction and removal of the Federalist Chase for his political biases seemed likely.

3. William Marcy "Boss" Tweed began as a volunteer fireman in New York who worked his way to the top of the Democratic New York City political machine by 1863. He developed a corrupt system known as the "Tweed Ring" that faked leases, demanded kickbacks, performed unnecessary repairs and generated other phony expenses that cost New York City from $75 million to $200 million, a huge amount of money at the time. Famed cartoonist Thomas Nast, who created Uncle Sam and the elephant and donkey for the Republican and Democratic Parties, frequently attacked Tweed in his cartoons.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5. William Marcy "Boss" Tweed began as a volunteer fireman in New York who worked his way to the top of the Democratic New York City political machine by 1863. He developed a corrupt system known as the "Tweed Ring" that faked leases, demanded kickbacks, performed unnecessary repairs and generated other phony expenses that cost New York City from $75 million to $200 million, a huge amount of money at the time. Famed cartoonist Thomas Nast, who created Uncle Sam and the elephant and donkey for the Republican and Democratic Parties, frequently attacked Tweed in his cartoons.

Eventually, Democratic federal prosecutor Samuel Tilden brought an indictment against Tweed, who was defended at trial by wealthy Republican Elihu Root in 1872. Tilden defeated Root and obtained the conviction, which catapulted Tilden to national prominence and became the Democratic nominee for president in 1876. He won the popular vote by a hefty 250,000, but the Republicans maneuvered to give Rutherford Hayes the White House based on a narrow lead in electoral college votes and a promise to end Reconstruction. Elihu Root, meanwhile, became an imperialist who later advocated entry by the United States into the League of Nations.

Eventually, Democratic federal prosecutor Samuel Tilden brought an indictment against Tweed, who was defended at trial by wealthy Republican Elihu Root in 1872. Tilden defeated Root and obtained the conviction, which catapulted Tilden to national prominence and became the Democratic nominee for president in 1876. He won the popular vote by a hefty 250,000, but the Republicans maneuvered to give Rutherford Hayes the White House based on a narrow lead in electoral college votes and a promise to end Reconstruction. Elihu Root, meanwhile, became an imperialist who later advocated entry by the United States into the League of Nations.

6. Sacco and Vanzetti were two anarchists from Italy. They had dodged the draft for World War I and were tried in 1921 for an afternoon robbery and murder of a shoe factory paymaster and a security guard as they carried a $16,000 payroll. Liberals in America decried trying individuals for their beliefs rather than their actions, and questions about the fairness of such a trial in Boston were raised from the beginning. They had skilled defense counsel in a famous labor attorney, but no Italians were included in the jury (none may have been in the jury pool). The defense counsel eliminated every businessman from the jury. Witnesses for the prosecution were weak, with one testifying that the murderer spoke good English (the defendants did not). The prosecution only identified one bullet as being from Sacco’s gun, with no explanation as to the source of the other three bullets found at the scene. The stolen money was never found.

4. Sacco and Vanzetti were two anarchists from Italy. They had dodged the draft for World War I and were tried in 1921 for an afternoon robbery and murder of a shoe factory paymaster and a security guard as they carried a $16,000 payroll. Liberals in America decried trying individuals for their beliefs rather than their actions, and questions about the fairness of such a trial in Boston were raised from the beginning. They had skilled defense counsel in a famous labor attorney, but no Italians were included in the jury (none may have been in the jury pool). The defense counsel eliminated every businessman from the jury. Witnesses for the prosecution were weak, with one testifying that the murderer spoke good English (the defendants did not). The prosecution only identified one bullet as being from Sacco’s gun, with no explanation as to the source of the other three bullets found at the scene. The stolen money was never found.

The defendants took the witness stand in their defense, but were subjected to relentless questioning about their political beliefs. Defense counsel repeatedly objected to such questions, but the judge overruled the objections and allowed them. There is widespread agreement that the judge never should have permitted so much questioning about political beliefs at the trial.

The defendants took the witness stand in their defense, but were subjected to relentless questioning about their political beliefs. Defense counsel repeatedly objected to such questions, but the judge overruled the objections and allowed them. There is widespread agreement that the judge never should have permitted so much questioning about political beliefs at the trial.

7. John Scopes was just a young teacher in Tennessee when he unwittingly became a test case for promoting evolution in American schools. Tennessee had a law against teaching human evolution, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) wanted to overturn it. It enlisted the top criminal attorney of the day, Clarence Darrow, to serve as Scopes attorney. As crafty as the day is long, he arrived in Tennessee armed with his bag of tricks.

5. John Scopes was just a young teacher in Tennessee when he unwittingly became a test case for promoting evolution in American schools. Tennessee had a law against teaching human evolution, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) wanted to overturn it. It enlisted the top criminal attorney of the day, Clarence Darrow, to serve as Scopes attorney. As crafty as the day is long, he arrived in Tennessee armed with his bag of tricks.

William Jennings Bryan, the former presidential candidate and Secretary of State, had oratorical skills second to known. His "Cross of Gold" nomination acceptance speech in 1896 is considered one of the greatest political works in American history. He united the Populist and Democratic Parties then and laid the foundation for the takeover by the Democratic Party of American politics 36 years later.

William Jennings Bryan, the former presidential candidate and Secretary of State, had oratorical skills second to known. His "Cross of Gold" nomination acceptance speech in 1896 is considered one of the greatest political works in American history. He united the Populist and Democratic Parties then and laid the foundation for the takeover by the Democratic Party of American politics 36 years later.

8. Colonel William "Billy" Mitchell dropped out of college in 1898 to serve in the Spanish-American War. Afterwards, America stayed out of wars until 1917, when Mitchell was touring Europe as an observer. By then he was considered too old to be trained on the new airplanes that were just being considered, but he learned to fly through private lessons of his own. When the United States entered World War I, Mitchell was the first American to fly over enemy lines. In 1918, he led a large bombing attack on St. Mihiel.

6. Colonel William "Billy" Mitchell dropped out of college in 1898 to serve in the Spanish-American War. Afterwards, America stayed out of wars until 1917, when Mitchell was touring Europe as an observer. By then he was considered too old to be trained on the new airplanes that were just being considered, but he learned to fly through private lessons of his own. When the United States entered World War I, Mitchell was the first American to fly over enemy lines. In 1918, he led a large bombing attack on St. Mihiel.

After the war he devoted his efforts to advocating greater use of aviation in the military, and criticizing those who resisted the change. In 1921 and 1923 he bombed old American and captured German battleships to demonstrate how easily air power could sink them, which he did. The embarrassed military brass sent him on a trip to Asia, but when Mitchell returned he predicted that Japan would ultimately attack us as it did at Pearl Harbor.

After the war he devoted his efforts to advocating greater use of aviation in the military, and criticizing those who resisted the change. In 1921 and 1923 he bombed old American and captured German battleships to demonstrate how easily air power could sink them, which he did. The embarrassed military brass sent him on a trip to Asia, but when Mitchell returned he predicted that Japan would ultimately attack us as it did at Pearl Harbor.

9. Alger Hiss had denied he knew Whittaker Chambers, a former American communist who claimed that Hiss had been passing him State Department secrets for years. Obscure Congressman Richard Nixon was convinced that Hiss was lying and questioned him when he appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee during the Cold War in 1948. Nixon intensely disliked Hiss, who came from the wealthy background of political connections that Nixon initially lacked. Nixon's pursuit of Hiss catapulted Nixon's career on a path that would eventually land him in the White House.

7. Alger Hiss had denied he knew Whittaker Chambers, a former American communist who claimed that Hiss had been passing him State Department secrets for years. Obscure Congressman Richard Nixon was convinced that Hiss was lying and questioned him when he appeared before the House Un-American Activities Committee during the Cold War in 1948. Nixon intensely disliked Hiss, who came from the wealthy background of political connections that Nixon initially lacked. Nixon's pursuit of Hiss catapulted Nixon's career on a path that would eventually land him in the White House.

Both Hiss and Chambers testified before the House Committee, contradicting each other. One had to be lying. When Chambers ultimately produced typed documents of State Department information and claimed they came from Hiss, a federal prosecutor in Manhattan indicted Hiss for perjury.

Both Hiss and Chambers testified before the House Committee, contradicting each other. One had to be lying. When Chambers ultimately produced typed documents of State Department information and claimed they came from Hiss, a federal prosecutor in Manhattan indicted Hiss for perjury.

Hiss maintained his innocence until he died, despite the eventual release of secret Soviet files apparently identifying him as a spy. Perhaps Hiss felt he could not go back on his prior statements, or perhaps he remained true to communism in protecting the movement. The case helped define American politics for forty years, propelling Nixon to the Vice Presidency in 1952, Barry Goldwater to the Republican nomination for president in 1964, Nixon to the White House in 1968, and ultimately Ronald Reagan to the White House in 1980, where he awarded Chambers a posthumous Medal of Freedom.

Hiss maintained his innocence until he died, despite the eventual release of secret Soviet files apparently identifying him as a spy. Perhaps Hiss felt he could not go back on his prior statements, or perhaps he remained true to communism in protecting the movement. The case helped define American politics for forty years, propelling Nixon to the Vice Presidency in 1952, Barry Goldwater to the Republican nomination for president in 1964, Nixon to the White House in 1968, and ultimately Ronald Reagan to the White House in 1980, where he awarded Chambers a posthumous Medal of Freedom.

10. In a famous recent trial, former football star O. J. Simpson was acquitted by a jury of the crime of murdering his wife.  The key argument in the trial was that the prosecutions' key witness, the policeman who gathered most of the evidence in the case, was shown to have lied, and the jury apparently found the argument that he may have tampered with the evidence credible, at least to the extent of giving them a "reasonable doubt."  In an apparently contradictory finding, a different jury found in a civil case ("lawsuit") that O. J. Simpson was responsible for the death of his wife, and assessed civil penalties.  Since the standards of proof is "preponderance of evidence" in a civil case, however, it is much easier to prove civil liability to a jury than it is to prove criminal guilt, and hance these results are not necessarily contradictory.

9. In 2007, vice-presidential aide Lewis "Scotter" Libby was accused of perjury for lying to a grand jury hearing testimony about the "leak" that resulted in revealing the identity of CIA agent Valerie Plame.  (It is important to note that he was not accused of illegally revealing the identity of Plame, potentially a much serious charge if he had deliberately revealed her as a CIA agent while knowing her identity was covert; in fact this was shown to be a non-issue).  Like the Clinton impeachment trial years earlier, the charge was lying to a grand jury over a matter that was not in itself illegal.  The jury verdict will tell much about the responsibility and immunity of the executive branch.