Abstract
This Article begins by discussing the nineteenth-century origins of trial by jury in Russia and the changes the system endured until the October 1917 Revolution, focusing particular attention on both the progressive exclusion of political crimes from the jurisdiction of the jury and use of alternative judicial procedures for such crimes. Next, the Article outlines the fundamental principles of the inquisitorial criminal justice system, which defined and dominated Soviet jurisprudence. Part I concludes by addressing Russia's revival of trial by jury in 1993, the specific characteristics of its new jury system, the other monumental criminal justice reforms of the 1990s, and the struggles that Russia now faces with respect to the implementation of those reforms. After developing Russia's juridical history as a historical lens, Part II uses this lens to focus reflections on terror trials, procedures to combat terrorism, and the federal sentencing regime in the United States.
Recommended Citation
Hon. John C. Coughenour, Reflections on Russia's Revival of Trial by Jury: History Demands That We Ask Difficult Questions Regarding Terror Trials, Procedures to Combat Terrorism, and Our Federal Sentencing Regime, 26 SEATTLE U. L. REV. 399 (2003).
