I've been on two different juries. I found the experience to be very interesting. I was amazed at just how poor the lawyers were on both sides in both cases.
One case involved a dispute between two family members that resulted in a stabbing. One of the men was pealing an apple for his daughter when his BIL barged in and basically attacked him. He was hitting the guy and his MIL was beating on the guy with a board. During the scuffle, the BIL was stabbed in the lower chest. It punctured a lung. He did recover.
When we began to deliberate, everyone on the jury except for me wanted to convict the guy. I just wasn't convinced. We asked for the hospital records. The stab wound was only one inch deep. The knife used was a paring knife. After thinking about it, I suggested that it was an accident. If someone really wanted to stab someone, they would put some force into it and it probably would have come from another angle. I felt like the BIL just ran into the knife during the fight. The defense attorney had not suggested anything like this. I managed to convince the rest of the jury panel and we found him not guilty. I felt like Henry Fonda in Twelve Angry Men!
I just thought the lawyers did a bad job. I know that if I am ever on trial for anything, I will hire the best attorney that money can buy. I really think a jury will go the way of the strongest person on the jury panel. I had very little trouble talking the rest of the panel members into following my lead. Kind of scary!