<P> Some jury instructions have been observed to be confusing and hard to understand by jurors due to how they are given the instructions . Several studies have discovered that subjects who received no jury instructions comprehended the law better than subjects who received pattern instructions . Jurors retain low comprehension of the most fundamental aspects of their roles . For instance, scholarly studies and anecdotal evidence suggest that jurors conflate reasonable doubt with the civil standard of preponderance of the evidence . </P> <P> In one study, citizens willing to impose the death penalty were presented in two experiments with four sets of instructions (i.e., baseline instructions, instructions used at trial, instructions revised according to Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution holdings, and model instructions written in nontechnical language). Results demonstrated high confusion with the trial instructions, little improvement with revised instructions, significant but case - specific improvements with model instructions, and a strong relationship between miscomprehension and willingness to impose death . </P> <P> In California, jury instructions were simplified to make them easier for jurors to understand . The courts moved cautiously because, although verdicts are rarely overturned due to jury instructions in civil court, this is not the case in criminal court . For example, the old instructions on burden of proof in civil cases read: </P> <P> Preponderance of the evidence means evidence that has more convincing force than that opposed to it . If the evidence is so evenly balanced that you are unable to say that the evidence on either side of an issue preponderates, your finding on that issue must be against the party who had the burden of proving it . </P>

What kind of instructions are given to the jury by the judge at the end of a criminal trial