MOSCOW, December 3 (RAPSI) – An idea of limiting Russian court juries to 5-7 people should be given a shot, Russian President Vladimir Putin said during his annual address to members of the parliament on Thursday.

“I know that human rights activist organizations advocate for jury to consist of 12 people… However it’s not easy to form such a jury and it costs a lot. Because of that an idea of limiting number of juries to 5-7 people should be considered”, Russian President said.

Putin proposes to broaden the amount of cases that are considered by juries.

“Authorities must increase the level of independence and objectivity of court trials. Therefore the role of juries should be elevated”, Putin said.