A
jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an
impartial verdict (a
finding of fact on a question) officially submitted to them by a
court, or to set a
penalty or
judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be
guilty or
not guilty (
not proven; a verdict of acquittal, based on the state's failure to prove guilt rather than any proof of innocence, is also available in
Scotland). The old institution of
grand juries still exists in some places, particularly the
United States, to investigate whether enough evidence of a crime exists to bring someone to trial.