As if juries really matter in criminal cases…

I see this afternoon two interesting posts about jury decision-making in criminal cases: Doug Lichtman at the UC Faculty Blog is here talking up proportional jury voting schemes; Ethan Leib at PrawfsBlawg is here talking up super-majorities and a “decision rule hybrid” for criminal juries.  My reaction to both posts are: “Hmm, how interesting, this might matter in the 1 out of every 10 criminal cases that goes to trial; I wonder how it would impact the other 9 that are resolved through pleas.”

I am, of course, all for deep thoughts and creative proposals concerning the structure of criminal juries (especially in the wake of Blakely).  Nevertheless, as Stephanos Bibas astutely stressed in this Yale Law Journal piece, in a world in which more than 90% of convictions result from guilty pleas, the real import and impact of criminal jury reforms depends upon the shadows that any proposed reform would cast over plea bargaining.