Jury selection: acknowledgment and agreement.

Assemblymember Pacheco's jury selection reform measure establishes standardized acknowledgment requirements for prospective and selected jurors in California courts. The legislation modifies Section 232 of the Code of Civil Procedure by introducing specific language that courts must use when obtaining agreements from jurors at two key stages of the selection process.

Under the new requirements, before voir dire examination begins, prospective jurors must affirm their understanding that providing false information about their qualifications could result in criminal prosecution. The acknowledgment states: "Do you understand and agree, under penalty of perjury, that you will accurately and truthfully answer all questions about your qualifications and ability to serve as a juror in this case, and that failure to do so may result in criminal prosecution?" Once the final jury is selected, members must acknowledge their duty to consider only evidence presented in court and follow judicial instructions when reaching a verdict. Both acknowledgments require jurors to respond with "I do."

The measure maintains the existing framework of obtaining juror agreements at these two stages while providing courts with precise language to use during the process. This modification to jury selection procedures requires no additional funding or program changes for implementation.