Gorilla in the Courtroom: When Jurors Go Blind - by Ross Laguzza

Gorilla in the Courtroom: When Jurors Go Blind - by Ross Laguzza: "Imagine a typical courtroom with a judge, jury, court reporter, bailiff, assorted spectators and oh yes, a gorilla. Would anyone notice the primate? More significantly, would your jurors notice? Recent research suggests that under the right conditions they just might not.

Lawyers often lament about jurors' failure to attend to, remember, and use key evidence and testimony in their deliberations. Jury interviews have revealed that some jurors claim no memory of certain witnesses. Attorneys and their clients frequently attribute this failure to a lack of motivation or intelligence. How else could an otherwise competent person miss something so central to the case? Over the years, efforts have been made to experiment with procedural interventions designed to increase juror comprehension. Research on perception suggests an explanation other than motivational or intellectual; instead the culprit may be a kind of 'cognitive blindness'.

My own experience may be illustrative: I once was invited to lecture at a bar association meeting in the mid-west. The program coordinator had planned to have someone meet me at my gate (this was when one could still do that) and take me to my hotel, but at the last minute called to say that no one was available; I would have to get myself to the hotel. I arrived on time and navigat"