Jury Duty Questions

[GasSavers_BEEF]

yea, jury duty sucks.

it has been two days now and I still have to go back tomorrow. I hope that tomorrow will be the last day.

never have I wanted to be at work so bad. not because of getting behind or lost wages but because of the sheer and utter booredom. sitting and listening to 3 different people saying the same thing to reitterate the fact that it is true and doing this for many different issues in the case.

it is a criminal case so I know there is a lot at stake here.

[theholycow]

Originally Posted by bobc455

BTG, if I was taken to court, I would want someone rational and logical like yourself sitting on the jury. Goodness knows there are too many kooks in this world that I would NOT want.

-BC

That, I believe, is a major source of failure in our justice system. It seems that the good logical smart aware people are too busy living their lives or otherwise can't/won't serve. That leaves people being judged by the kooks, crazies, busybodies, agenda-pushers, losers, and people too dumb to find a way out...with the rare exception of a decent guy whose sense of duty or lack of excuse leaves him serving.

[FrugalFloyd]

I know I was too hard on BTG, based on past discussions. Out with the bath water, not the baby.

One thing we have to do going into the jury box is throw out our prejudices and assumptions, and try the case impartially. I commend you, Beef, for doing your civic duty. I'm sure BTG will do the right thing if he's called, too. It affirms my faith in the system to know you're willing to do your civic duty, and will try to be fair.

I come from a career in law enforcement, building cases and managing them through the legal system. You might think I'd automatically side with the cops. That's definitely not true.

[GasSavers_BEEF]

I think that we all have biases and there are none exempt from that. I have different biases than anyone else as my life has been different from theirs (and pretty much anyone can say that)

I am trying my best to be impartial. right now, the evidence is speaking for itself.

when I was in the pool of potential jurors, I thought to myself that this was a big waste of time and I also thought about all the ways I could possibly get out of it. I saw one guy pull out the "judge not" card and it hit me that I was representing myself here and I did not want to miss represent myself.

I don't regret being on the jury but I will say that it is refreshing that they can't call me back for 2 years as it is one of the most (if not the most) boring thing I have ever done.

[bowtieguy]

i've often wondered how jurors cope in a high profile case that drags on for months. naturally, some are compensated enough, but what of business owners and those in my position?

if the accused was blantantly intentional in his/her crime, and couldn't find the integrity to plead guilty...well there's where i take issue. someone trying to beat the system on my dime, and in the process jeopardize my family and our home.

extreme view? maybe, but i'm certain it happens. and that's justice? give me a break! as w/ many issues, accountability is lacking in the world.

[GasSavers_BEEF]

bowtie,

ironically my case was similar (only not high profile) the one piece of evidence that convince the jury over anything else was the fact that he confessed to an SBI agent (State Bureau of Investigation). the argument from the defense was that he had not been read his maranda rights. but he was not charged with anything or under arrest. the confession wasn't signed by the defendant, but it was just an interview to get his side so it wasn't time for that. and it had not been recorded. all of these things were not in this mans protocol at the time (the SBI agent).

without giving too many details, we found him guilty of all counts. some were still on the fence but could at least see why the rest of us felt that way. the funny thing was that the judge asked the guy why he even brought it before a jury since there was a confession in the case and he had a plea bargain on the table.

instead of getting 1 year probation (the plea bargain) he got 3 years probation and 90 days in prison. he was also added to the sex offender list (this would have happened either way).

it was in my opinion a waste of time but even the judge said that you have a constitutional right to a trial before a jury of your peers. I did feel more confident in my decision after that. I was one of the ones that was saying that he was guilty of all charges based on the testimony of the SBI agent along with all the other supporting evidence.

the frustrating thing is that my jury duty is a week, not a trial. I have to go back tomorrow to see if I get selected for a short trial that will last a day or so. the judge did tell us that we would be the last ones to be picked from out of the pool. more than likely, I will not be picked but there is that possibility.

[FrugalFloyd]

Business owners and salaried employees whose employers don't pay their wages when they're on jury duty, are in the same boat. They have to plead hardship, and hope the judge is sympathetic. Most are, but they hear it sooo often, often from people who really won't suffer any hardship, they don't always let you off. Usually there are enough retired jurors, housewives, and government employees to make up most petit jury panels without forcing people who have some excuse not to serve.

Grand juries are something else. Typically 18 months of service, meeting at least once/week, and sometimes many more.