Description

Chapters 41 and 43 discuss the functions of, respectively, the renewed motion for acquittal and the closing argument in a jury trial. In that context, where the roles of fact-finder and arbiter of legal issues are distinct, the motion for acquittal is addressed to the judge as the arbiter of legal issues while the closing argument is addressed to the jury as the trier of fact. The motion for acquittal asks the judge to rule as a matter of law that the defendant cannot be convicted because, even crediting all of the prosecution’s evidence and drawing every reasonable inference from it in favor of the prosecution, no reasonable juror could find the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. See §§ 38.1, 41.2.1 supra. The closing argument to the jury asks the jurors to find as a matter of fact that the prosecution has not sustained its burden of proving the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

First Page

1906

Source Publication

Trial Manual 11 for the Defense of Criminal Cases

Source Editors/Authors

Anthony G. Amsterdam, Randy A. Hertz

Publication Date

2026

Document Type

Chapter

Edition

11

Rights & Restrictions

CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

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