MISTRIAL

in law, a trial that has been terminated and declared void before a judge can hand down a decision or a jury can render a verdict. It has the effect of nullifying all the preceding proceedings as if they had not taken place. Therefore, should another trial on the same charges, with the same defendants, be ordered, that trial would start all over again, with the previous testimony or other findings not reckoned as necessarily relevant in the newer court proceedings. There are several factors that can result in a mistrial, including the death of an attorney or juror (if the latter is not replaceable by one of the alternates); a remark that would be highly prejudicial to the defendant and that the judge may feel cannot, in spite of instructions, be ignored by the jury; or the discovery that members of the jury had discussed the case contrary to court instructions or that a sequestered jury was able to read or hear newspaper or other media reports of the trial. Most often, a mistrial may be declared if the jury itself cannot arrive at a verdict after repeated attemptsi.e., if it is a hung jury.