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People who lie, cheat and steal normally don’t admit that they lie, cheat and steal. Thus, it is reasonable to assume that a deceitful person, would act deceitful, when asked a question about how truthful they are.
So, what do you think would be the benefit of asking a deceitful person: “are you a liar?” That would probably be the “Number One” worst question you could ask a liar. Could you imagine how this would go during a trial.
Lawyer: Sir are you a liar?
Juror: Yes sir, I lie all the time. As a matter of fact, I have lied in almost all my answers to the court today.
Lawyer: Thank you for your honesty sir. Your Honor, move to strike for cause.
Unfortunately, I have never experienced such candor from a juror. While the above question seems like a ridiculous method to determine the truthfulness of juror, some courts commonly use the same type of questioning when trying to find out if a juror has the ability to be fair. The scenario usually plays out after a juror gives some indication of a bias. Upon further questioning, they say it would be really difficult for them to put aside their prejudice. Then they are asked something like:
Prosecutor: “If we tell you that the law requires you put aside your bias; That you are required to just consider the evidence presented in court. Could you do that?”
Juror: “If you put it like that, I think I could.”
Prosecutor: “Then you could be fair and impartial in this case?”
Juror: “Well, yes.”
What person is inclined to say in open court that they could not be a fair person? Our egos and vanity don’t want to conclude that we are not fair. On the contrary, most of us believe we can be fair (regardless of the reality of this belief).
However, there is a small group of people that will have no problem saying they could not be fair. This group primarily consists of two types of people: (1) people who want to get out of jury duty; and (2) people exceptionally honest about their prejudice. These outliers are not the concern. It is the remaining majority that we have to worry about.
If you wanted to find out if a person could be a fair juror, the worst question you could ask us is: “are you a liar?” The very nature of the question is somewhat offensive and will not provide a reliable answer. Consequently, The second worst question to ask a juror is: “can you be fair and impartial?”