petty jury

American  

noun

1. (in a civil or criminal proceeding) a jury, usually of 12 persons, impaneled to determine the facts and render a verdict pursuant to the court's instructions on the law.

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petty jury British  

noun

1. a variant spelling of petit jury

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Other Word Forms

• petty juror
  noun

Etymology

Origin of petty jury

First recorded in 1680–90

Example Sentences

But on 26 January, 1219, King Henry III issued an edict - the trial by petty jury was born in England.

From BBC • Feb. 8, 2019

The petty jury simply moved that forward - a group of 12 people were now being asked to determine guilt.

From BBC • Feb. 8, 2019

The only way in which Hampden and Pym could legally be tried for treason at the suit of the King, was by a petty jury on a bill found by a grand jury.

From Critical and Historical Essays — Volume 1 by Macaulay, Thomas Babington Macaulay, Baron

What a pity that the fugitive slave bill judge was not himself the grand-jury, to order the indictment! what a shame that the attorney was not a petty jury to convict!

From The Trial of Theodore Parker For the "Misdemeanor" of a Speech in Faneuil Hall against Kidnapping, before the Circuit Court of the United States, at Boston, April 3, 1855, with the Defence by Parker, Theodore

When this petty jury could not agree, the decision of a majority was sometimes accepted.

From The Leading Facts of English History by Montgomery, D. H. (David Henry)