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REPORTER’S NOTE
Amendments to Rules 2-512 and 4-312 are proposed by the
Rules Committee.
The Committee proposes a change as to when an alternate
juror is discharged, allowing the judge to keep the alternates as
such until all of the jurors have been discharged. If, for
example, in a case in which punitive damages may be awarded, one
of the original jurors becomes ill and is unable to serve during
the punitive damage phase of the case, the alternate would be
available to serve in place of that juror.
At the request of the Council on Jury Use and Management,
the Committee also recommends the addition of a new subsection
that goes one step further and expressly allows an alternate
juror to replace a juror who, during deliberations, becomes
unable or disqualified to serve. The Committee notes that the
addition reflects a change in the policy underlying the current
rule as enunciated in Hayes v. State, 355 Md. 615 (1999), a
change that would be coming “through the normal rule-making
process.” Id. at 635. Proposed new subsection (b)(2) of Rule
2-512 and subsection (b)(3)(C) of Rule 4-312 that implement the
Council’s suggested change are based on Fed. R. Crim. P. 24
(c)(2).
The Committee is recommending that Rules 2-512 and 4-312 be
amended to add to each Rule a provision for an advance
questionnaire for jurors, based on the recommendation of the
Council on Jury Use and Management. One of the benefits of the
questionnaire is the protection of privacy for potential jurors
who will be able to answer questions, which may be of a personal
nature, in writing instead of orally in front of an entire array
of jurors. Another benefit is a reduction in the amount of time
needed for the examination of jurors under Rules 2-512 (e) and 4-
312 (e).
Additional proposed amendments to the two Rules allow jurors
to be identified by a method other than by the juror’s name
during a roll call, and the amendments make clear that the jury
foreperson may be selected either by the court or by the jury.
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