Mistrial

Plain English

A mistrial occurs when something goes seriously wrong during a trial—like a juror being biased, critical evidence being improperly admitted, or the judge making a major legal error—that makes the verdict unreliable. When a mistrial is declared, the trial ends and the case typically starts over from the beginning with a new jury. It's essentially a "do-over" because the original trial cannot produce a fair result.

Example

During a murder trial, the prosecutor accidentally mentions the defendant's prior criminal conviction, which the judge had ruled inadmissible. The defense attorney objects, and the judge realizes the jury has heard prejudicial information that cannot be "unheard." The judge declares a mistrial, and the case will be retried.

Used in a sentence

“The judge declared a mistrial after discovering that a juror had been secretly researching the case on the internet.”

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