INTRODUCTION In cases where the defendant goes before a jury--2% of all felony cases and 27% of murder cases (1)--every part of the trial can be integral to the jury's verdict. A criminal trial is composed of numerous parts, including the testimony and questioning of witnesses, the presentation of testimony by the alleged victim or defendant, and the prosecutor's and defense attorney's opening and closing arguments. While these components are key to a jury's decision, another important factor is often overlooked: sex of the attorney. Research on jury sex bias has been mixed. Cohen and Peterson found that female defense attorneys are returned fewer guilty verdicts than male defense attorneys, (2) while Hahn and Clayton found the opposite. (3) However, no study has examined specifically how the content of a prosecutor's closing argument may interact with the sex of attorney in jury verdicts.
