Juries and Joined Trials

The Law concerning Joined Trials

Rule 8(a) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure allows for defendants to be tried for two or more offenses in a single trial if the offenses are similar in character or are part of a single scheme or plan of action. Furthermore, Rule 8(b) allows for two or more defendants to be tried in a single trial if they are accused of jointly engaging in the same criminal transaction. Although these rules are for federal courts, many states have patterned their own rules of criminal procedure after these federal rules. The primary purpose of the combination of offenses is judicial expediency. Separate trials for each offense or defendant would result in many more trials, increasing court costs. In essence, the issue becomes balancing the need to conserve resources with providing defendants fair trials.

The law does recognize that joining offenses and/or defendants may result in a pro-prosecution bias. Rule 14 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure states that the court must protect defendants from the prejudice that may arise from joined trials by separating the charges into separate trials, severing the trials of two or more defendants, or employing any other remedy necessary. If defendants wish to be tried for each of the charges separately or be tried separately from other defendants, they can make a motion for severance of the offenses or from the defendant. However, judges frequently will rule in favor of joining offenses and defendants, unless a case can be made that a joined trial will prejudice the jury. Prejudice may be inferred if the defendant would be likely to rely on contradictory defense strategies if the charges were severed, if the jury would be likely to infer from one of the charges that the defendant has a criminal disposition, or if the jury would be likely to accumulate evidence across charges when determining the defendant's guilt.

Judges may be disposed to join offenses or defendants because case law argues that any prejudice that does arise from joinder can be easily remedied. Specifically, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that prejudice from joining offenses or defendants in a single trial can be prevented by instructing jurors to consider the evidence for each charge individually and decide independently the verdicts for each of the charges or defendants.

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