In the year 1910 the juries of New
York County convicted in sixty-six per cent of the cases
before them. If we are to test fairly the efficiency of the
system, we must deduct from the thirty-four acquittals
remaining the fifteen acquittals which were justifiable. By
so doing we shall find that in the year 1910 the New York
County juries did the correct thing in about eighty-one cases
out of every hundred. This is a high percentage of
efficiency.* Is it likely that any judge would have done much
better?
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* The following table gives the yearly percentages of
convictions and acquittals by verdict in New York County since
1901:
NUMBER NUMBER
YEAR CONVICTIONS ACQUITTALS CONVICTIONS ACQUITTALS
BY VERDICT BY VERDICT PER CENT PER CENT
1901........551...........344..........62............38
1902........419...........349..........55............45
1903........485...........307......
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