20 Oct 2010

Addresses to be removed from jury lists

7:40 pm on 20 October 2010

The Government has agreed to remove the addresses of potential jurors from jury lists.

Justice Minister Simon Power says the move follows convicted murderer George Baker contacting a juror after appearing to memorise address details from the jury list.

Under the current law, a jury list must contain the name, occupation, date of birth and full address of potential jurors.

Since 2008, self-represented defendants have been prohibited from keeping a copy of the list or taking notes, but they can inspect the list under supervision.

Mr Power says the information needs to be further restricted because incidents such as Baker's case have the potential to shake jurors' confidence in the jury system and discourage the public from participating in the justice system.