California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Metters, 61 Cal.App.4th 1489, 72 Cal.Rptr.2d 294 (Cal. App. 1998):
We do not agree that restrictions on the discretion of the trial court are necessary to prevent a holdout juror from being dismissed for disagreeing with the other jurors regarding the merits of the case. We are confident in the ability of our trial courts to analyze requests for dismissal involving holdout [61 Cal.App.4th 1526] jurors in a neutral manner without regard to whether dismissal would hasten a verdict or avoid a mistrial. The trial court is in the best position to observe the appearance and demeanor of the jurors in order to conclude whether a request for dismissal is legitimately based on good cause. (People v. Beeler (1995) 9 Cal.4th 953, 989, 39 Cal.Rptr.2d 607, 891 P.2d 153.)
The above passage should not be considered legal advice. Reliable answers to complex legal questions require comprehensive research memos. To learn more visit www.alexi.com.