i'm a defense attorney -- in my opinion, judges have a better grasp on the law because of their training, but juries have a much better grasp of the real world.

i'm a defense attorney -- in my opinion, judges have a better grasp on the law because of their training, but juries have a much better grasp of the real world. judges have been insulated from the typical criminal case lifestyle and demographic -- they tend to come from wealthy, stable, upper middle class backgrounds. they don't know how things are on the streets trailer parks, and ghettos, and they don't know why people lie, and the shenanigans people pull. they tend to base their decisions on the theory they know well, rather than the street smarts they lack. i always go with a jury, except with cases like child porn. In CP cases, the jury is much more likely to get emotionally fired up and send your guy to the gallows, because probably half of them have been molested or know somebody who has. judges are again insulated from this, and they'll tend to look at it as a "mere possession" case, and go easier on you.