Jury duty

[imalikalotapuss]

Well today was my very first day of Jury duty... :confused: After setting there most of the day with a bunch of others waiting to see if we were gonna become part of the jury, i really have mixed emotions about the whole thing..So i thought i would poll my fellow pixies and see what there thoughts were.

Pesrsonally I chose all the above, I would hate to make the wrong choice and convict an innocent person and on the other hand would hate to let someone off that should be convicted :hair:

[Sharni]

I've been called up a couple of times....but never chosen

[LixyChick]

Never actually performed my civic duty. I was called up a few times...and those times coincided with things that happened to be reasons to be excused (too long to list the reasons). I am not opposed to serving. It's just been real bad timing!

So...I can't answer your query imalikalotapuss. But chalk this up to fear of the unknown and a life's lesson learned!

Good luck hun!

[MilkToast]

I can't vote on this one either, I got called and then they had me as part of the selection pool. When they asked what I did I told them I was an electrical engineer and they sent me home!

[Master Scribe]

For some reason the system seems to take exception to the idea that erotic writers who are deaf and members of the ACLU...maybe that is why I have never been chosen............. :line: :jump: :lurv: :rofl:

[fzzy]

I've never served on a jury but been called up MANY times .... there are so many trials that happen here in California that registered voters are being called every 12 months .... sometimes you get the notice sooner -- which is lucky, because by law you can only be called up for jury duty 1 time in 12 months so if that happens, your name goes back to the end of the list! I don't mind the concept of it, it's just that .. as you said ... it's usually a day (or sometimes as much as 2 weeks here) that you go and sit and sit and sit and sit .... and then about 3:30 or 4:00 they tell you if you can go home and not worry about coming back .... or go home and come back again tomorrow (when you get to sit and sit and sit and sit all over again). I always take a couple of books and some kind of craft (cross-stitch, etc.) project and a few snacks, cause nothing takes a longer time to pass then just sitting and looking at a bunch of people you don't even know. :)

[Lilith]

I have a girlfriend who has been called up for the Enron case here. She will fail school in her last semester if selected.

[PantyFanatic]

I voted [all of the above] but did NOT find it boring!
I had the opportunity to set on the jury for a murder 1 case many years ago. It is an experience that I would recommend to everyone. I don’t believe you can not take it VERY seriously and it was a lesion of how our system is suppose to work. While it has caused loathing of the abuses and manipulations by the practitioners, it left faith in the principles of fairness among a dubious specie.

My son was also tapped to do this a couple years ago and returned for one of those rare, meaningful, father-son talks, that you can only share with someone that has peeked into the same dark hole. He also happened to pull a first degree murder trial.

I personally, thank you imalikalotapuss, for supporting the essential link within the system that anchors it to the people it judges and severs. The dilemma is that the capable, intelligent, with common sense, members of our society ARE busy and committed because they ARE like Lixy, capable, intelligent, with common sense people. Some of the “news worthy” judicial events of the last decade have shown us how important a better portion of our peers can be.

[jseal]

imalikalotapuss,

I've served on a Grand Jury and on a "regular old" jury a few times. If you are interested in how justice is handed down, there is no better way for a layman to learn than by participating in the process. Hanging round for the day with the other prospective jurors is dull though.

[PantyFanatic]

..... She will fail school in her last semester if selected.
There are a LOT of reasons besides dodging a serious responsibility, that the system falls down. Other parts of the TOTAL system need to recognize that their participation and cooperation do not cease at their property line.

[Lilith]

She filled out the 47 question form that accompanied her summons and sent it friday...over 1000 potential jurrors were summoned.

[imalikalotapuss]

PF: You wouldnt believe the excuses people would have as to why they couldnt serve. I was a little shocked. It is boring at times, but at the same time it is interesting. A definate learning experience. Sharni, how does the system work in Australia?

[PantyFanatic]

She filled out the 47 question form that accompanied her summons and sent it friday...over 1000 potential jurrors were summoned.
Wouldn’t it be nice if somebody with enough intelligence to peruse an education, received whatever special tutoring and support necessary, for FREE, was involved with judging the conduct of people who abuse the system to swindle countless individuals AND INSTUTATIONS out of the life long product of their effort?

[Irish]

My,personal,opinion will probably not be very popular!I figure,WHO am I to
judge someone else?Also when I was a kid,my father told me to tell them,that
my father had been a State Cop & also an Aux. Town policeman.He said that
neither side would want me! Irish

[fzzy]

My one and only time I got to go in a group to be questioned about being on a jury in a particular trial ... it was actually quite humorous .... I never made it up to being questioned, but in the first 20 or so that did .... 3/4 of them had a graduate level education ... 2 doctors, 2 lawyers (one of which was a prosecuting attorney for LA County), 2 engineers, 1 retired priest, 2 previous police officers and those who didn't have a higher than Bachelor's degree education had successful businesses of their own. We broke for lunch ... came back, sat around with the court room closed for another hour and the judge came out to thank us for being willing to serve and told us to report back to the jury room for further instruction .... he then said something we all had to smile about "I think you scared the crap out of the defendant and his attorneys" Orange Co. California is really a rather unique place to live .... during that hour wait by the courtroom door, I discovered that those 20 were a fair representation of the entire group that was waiting to possibly serve on that jury .... every single one of us had at least a couple of years of college education, all were in the working world, several had rather successful businesses or their business was as a professional (engineer, doctor, lawyer, etc.) ... I don't think there are many places where you would have that kind of group to select from for a jury. :)

[imalikalotapuss]

Whew, it's over, even tho i don't totally agree with the outcome, it was a great learning experience. I am glad i did it. I was hard headed, and upset some of the other jurors..lol. But, justice as our judicial is setup was carried out. I was a little surprised that after everything was over the Judge visited with us and explained a lot of things to us, and that helped a lot. Any way, its over.. :cents: