Jury Nullification

Juries can return a not guilty verdict even if they agree that the defendant broke the law, if they feel the law itself is unjust. This is referred to as jury nullification and judges do not want jurors to know about it, even going so far as to hold people handing out literature about it in front of courthouses in contempt of court. Although, times are changing because it is very hard to prevent, and many judges now rightly defend it. Some states even have laws requiring jurors to be informed, like New Hampshire. It's not illegal to inform jurors in the courtroom, but when someone on the street informs people going into a courthouse, the law gets murkier.