The boy had, that night, had an argument with his father, which resulted in the boy’s father hitting him twice. A woman living across the street testified that she saw the boy kill his father through the windows of a passing elevated train. The boy claimed he had been at the movies while his father was murdered, but couldn’t remember the name of the movies or who was in them. Through this discussion we learn the following facts about the case: an old man living beneath the boy and his father testified that he heard upstairs a fight, the boy shouting, “I’m gonna kill you,” a body hitting the ground, and then he saw the boy running down the stairs. Ultimately, they decide to go around the table, explaining why they believe the boy to be guilty, in hopes of convincing 8th Juror. Jurors try to argue with him, most notably 10th Juror, who makes a particularly racist argument against the defendant, saying that “they’re born liars.” 12th Juror isn’t even paying attention, doodling an ad idea for his marketing campaign.

He cites the boy’s troubled upbringing, with his mother dead and his father jailed. The other jurors react aggressively to his dissenting vote, trying to quickly talk him out of it, but 8th Juror remains convinced that he is “not sure” whether or not the boy is guilty and feels that they owe it to him to talk about the case for at least an hour, just to make sure.

All of the jurors vote “guilty,” except for the 8th Juror, who votes “not guilty,” which, due to the requirement of a unanimous jury, forces them to discuss the case. Eventually, the twelve sit down and a vote is taken. All who talk about the case seem flippant about the situation, and all presume the obvious guilt of the defendant, who we learn has been accused of killing his father. They complain that the room is hot and without air-conditioning even the fan doesn’t work. They talk casually and we begin to meet some of the jurors. The men file in and decide to take a short break before deliberating.

These are 2nd- 12th Juror and the Foreman. After these instructions, the jurors enter. We learn that this is a murder case and that, if found guilty, the mandatory sentence for the accused is the death penalty. The play opens to the empty jury room, and the Judge’s voice is heard, giving a set of final instructions to the jurors.

The play is set in a New York City Court of Law jury room in 1957.

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