HB 292 amends Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure Article 812 to change how juries are polled in criminal cases. The bill requires jury polling to be done in writing, in open court, whenever requested by either the state or the defendant. It applies both when a verdict has been reached and when a case ends in a mistrial because the jury could not reach a verdict.
For cases with a verdict, each juror must receive a written slip asking, “Is this your verdict?” and respond “Yes” or “No” with a signature. If enough jurors confirm the verdict, the court records it and discharges the jury; if not, the court may send the jury back for further deliberation or declare a mistrial. For cases with no verdict, the bill creates a separate written polling procedure asking jurors, “What was your verdict?” and allowing responses of “guilty,” “not guilty,” or “guilty of a lesser offense.” In both situations, the court may seal the polling slips for stated reasons, and any later public release must redact jurors’ names.
Impact
The bill directly amends Article 812 of the Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure and adds a new written polling procedure for mistrials under Article 775(2). It changes courtroom practice by making written polling the required method rather than an oral poll, and it expands polling to cases where no verdict was reached if either party requests it. It also creates rules for sealing and later releasing polling slips, including mandatory redaction of juror names, which affects court records, transparency, and juror privacy.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have been broadly supported. It passed the House 93-3 and the Senate 34-2, indicating strong bipartisan approval and little recorded opposition. The lack of committee transcript material suggests there was no major publicized controversy in the available record, and the voting margins indicate general agreement that the measure is a procedural improvement to criminal trials.
Contention
The main potential points of contention are procedural and privacy-related. One issue is whether written polling should replace or supplement traditional oral polling, especially in cases where a verdict is uncertain and the court must decide between further deliberation and mistrial. Another is the handling of polling slips: the bill allows them to be sealed only for specific reasons stated by the court, but if released later, juror names must be redacted. That balance between transparency, record preservation, and juror confidentiality is the most likely area of disagreement, though the recorded votes show limited opposition.