Rejected petition Do not abandon the jury system for crown court trials in the UK.

The jury system remains one of the strongest bulwarks against arbitrary state power and a uniquely British contribution to fair criminal justice. While not perfect, its strengths in legitimacy, independence, and community representation are seen as outweighing the occasional anomalies.

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Juries allow citizens to play a role in criminal justice. This reinforces the idea that criminal justice belongs to the people, not just legal professionals or the state. Verdicts delivered by 12 citizens have greater democratic legitimacy than decisions made by a judge.
Juries are a safeguard against state overreach or bias. Because jurors are lay people with no professional connection to the police, prosecution, or government, they are less likely to be influenced by institutional pressures.

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.

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You may wish to sign the following petition, which calls for similar action:

Do not remove trial by jury for certain cases
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/751480

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 26 November 2025
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