The story begins after closing arguments have been presented in a homicide case, as the judge is giving his instructions to the jury. The twelve men must determine, unanimously, whether the accused is innocent or guilty of the charge of murder. These twelve then move to the jury room, where they begin to become acquainted with the personalities of their peers. Throughout their deliberation, not a single juror knows another by his name. In a preliminary vote they are startled to find that one juror has voted "not guilty." Many of the jurors are amazed and disturbed because Juror #8 (played by Fonda), the lone dissenter, does not see the "open and shut" nature of the case. Juror #8 maintains that he has a reasonable doubt, and it is morally wrong and illegal to condemn a man to death if any jury member has a reasonable doubt. Although Juror #9 (played by Joseph Sweeney) believes that the young man is probably guilty, he is nonetheless impressed by Juror #8's conviction and shares his......
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Approximate Word Count: 477
Approximate Pages: 2 (260 words per double-spaced page) |