Jury duty

[mikester]

I had jury duty today - have to back in a week for selection. Yay!

Wife got a federal summons in the mail a couple of days ago. Those look much more serious than the local summons...

[gatotom]

Got to love it, I have to call in tom. night for the second call in, cross my fingers on the answer is thanks but no thanks, see you next yr.

[Zeke]

Never heard of anyone having to report back in a week. They form a jury from the pool at the start of the trial. This is part of the trial.

What happened to make this different?

[VaSteve]

Every place does it differently. I got pulled to report (or call in) every Wednesday for a month. I never actually had to show up at the court house though.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Zeke

Never heard of anyone having to report back in a week. They form a jury from the pool at the start of the trial. This is part of the trial.

What happened to make this different?

Here you have to go to court Mon morning, then Mon-Thu night, you have to call in to a specific number after 6pm and see if your name is on the list (and someone ends up on the list pretty much every night). Those are generally for little crappy cases, I assume. Probably minor arrests or traffic or he said, she said types of things.

I've been lucky to never have to serve. I understand that it's a civic duty and part of what makes this country great, and I'm being selfish by not wanting to do it. It is what it is. I don't want to get stuck listening to a bunch of crap and then having to deal with the dumbarses that got chosen with me. I don't know for sure that I could be unbiased too, and that's the truth. I was once almost chosen, and even before they started asking us questions, the defendent was in the room. I thought she looked guilty to me. That can't be good for the process.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by masraum

Here you have to go to court Mon morning, then Mon-Thu night, you have to call in to a specific number after 6pm and see if your name is on the list (and someone ends up on the list pretty much every night). Those are generally for little crappy cases, I assume. Probably minor arrests or traffic or he said, she said types of things.

I've been lucky to never have to serve. I understand that it's a civic duty and part of what makes this country great, and I'm being selfish by not wanting to do it. It is what it is. I don't want to get stuck listening to a bunch of crap and then having to deal with the dumbarses that got chosen with me. I don't know for sure that I could be unbiased too, and that's the truth. I was once almost chosen, and even before they started asking us questions, the defendent was in the room. I thought she looked guilty to me. That can't be good for the process.

Oh yeah, I know all about that. They got me as far as sitting in a alternate seat for a murder trial. I wanted no part in that. The ruse was if I objected strictly on the basis of serving on a capital crime, they would send me down the hall to a business trial.

I worked around the whole deal using the "informed jury" spiel. You can Google those terms if you're unfamiliar. I think I learned that here.

[Flieger]

This? Fully Informed Jury Association - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Rick Lee]

When I got called, I was well familiar with the case, I work in the news biz and the judge didn't care at all. I was the last one kicked off. Whew! The defendant copped a plea a few days later in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table. 25 yrs. old and never getting out of prison. That has to suck.

[wdfifteen]

I served twice in the 1970s but haven't been called back since. Ex senator Mike Dewine was the prosecutor in both cases. Maybe that has something to do with it, since we knew each other in high school. During voir dire I was asked if I had attended any of his campaign parties and I said yes. I thought that would be an automatic out, but they seated me anyway.

[slodave]

I'm pretty much exempt from having to serve at this point in my life. Suits me just fine. At some point, I'll be ready to help decide someone's fate, but for now, I'm happy not to go.

[Hugh R]

At the time of the North Hollywood Bank Shootout at Bank of America, I was on a home invasion double execution murder trial about 1/2 mile away. A fascinating trail. We had one of the guys dead to rights (separate trails). Let me tell you there are a lot of really stupid people on juries. We barely managed to get LWOPOP. We had DNA, foot prints, an audio confession in the holding cell where he didn't know he was being recorded. Fingerprints on the duct tape that went around the victims mouths, and yet some jurors were not going to go the death penalty no matter what. They would say stupid stuff like "Oh, he was the Captain of the Compton Basketball team" So what, he and a buddy did a home invasion and murdered two parents (duct tape and plastic bags over their heads and shot them when they flopped around too much) for what they thought they had in a safe. If I'm ever charged with a crime, I'll go for a jury trial; there are a lot of stupid people accepted on to juries.

[Flieger]

I got one for a federal court a couple weeks ago. Then last week I got a summons for the local county one. The first I can get off of since I am more than 200 miles away and in school. The newest I will try to defer til winter break.

I hadn't had any for a couple years.

[mikester]

Originally Posted by Zeke

Oh yeah, I know all about that. They got me as far as sitting in a alternate seat for a murder trial. I wanted no part in that. The ruse was if I objected strictly on the basis of serving on a capital crime, they would send me down the hall to a business trial.

I worked around the whole deal using the "informed jury" spiel. You can Google those terms if you're unfamiliar. I think I learned that here.

I'm almost 40 and this is the first time I've ever even received a summons. When was the last time you went?

My understanding in LA County back in the old'n days you had to sit for 10 days waiting to be called and if you got called but didn't get picked you went back to wait.

NOW it is 1 day or 1 trial which means you will not sit and wait for more than 1 day. If you do not get called to a pool by 4-5pm (they finish up based on case load at different times) the day you are instructed to serve then you are done. Service complete.

If you do get called for a pool then that pool may not start right then and there - I don't know if it is normal to be pushed to another day or not but all of the pools I saw get pulled today seemed to go that way (this was downtown by the way). The first pool was pulled for an estimated 40 day trial - mine was 'estimated' at 18 days. My boss loved that when I told him...

So now next Tuesday I report again for jury selection. I'm in the pool, I do get to talk to the judge about if I can or can't meet the needs but they will probably have little regard for my personal needs. I did tell my boss that 18 days was kind of a long time but at the same time I do feel like if everyone tried to get out of it who would do it? It's an obligation and being that I am a firm believer in the constitution I should take the high road here and do my duty. Right? =-)

I have to call in Monday night to see if I actually need to show up. The other thing is the county isn't supposed to ask you to server more than 20 miles away from your home. Downtown for me is 19. If it is more than 20 you can ask for a transfer.

[slodave]

You can ask for a transfer for almost any reason. I believe you are eligible here ever 13 months.

[quicksix]

I might be in the minority,but I would like to sit on a jury,
it would be a great learning experience.
I have only been summoned twice and both times did not have to show

[PorscheGAL]

Originally Posted by quicksix

I might be in the minority,but I would like to sit on a jury,
it would be a great learning experience.
I have only been summoned twice and both times did not have to show

This is me. I would find it interesting to serve. I understand that for some it can cause great hardship to serve on a jury. I think it would be nice if the courts would let people volunteer if they can.

[Crowbob]

I sat on a murder trial and wanted to convict the jury of stoopidness. The lady defendant got off on self-defense (after stabbing her 400 lb husband right through the heart) because the police LOST a crucial piece of blood-splattered evidence. Cool pictures of it, though.

I must admit the process was very interesting and enlightening. If you get in trouble, ALWAYS ask for a jury trial is what I learned, then find a glove that may or may not fit.

[Rapewta]

After a dozen or so jury summons and getting let go for different reasons, I finally
sat through a criminal trial as a juror. It is an interesting experience. I have no desire to do it again but I think everyone should go through the process.
Some times you get discusted with the lies and ethics of the people involed with the trial but you do end up seeing justice.
Put it on your list of "to do's before I die" stuff.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by Flieger

This? Fully Informed Jury Association - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Yes.

Originally Posted by Hugh R

... an audio confession in the holding cell where he didn't know he was being recorded...

I guess I don't know much about the law, but it seems a conviction in that case would have been appealed.

Originally Posted by Crowbob

I sat on a murder trial and wanted to convict the jury of stoopidness.

My main objection to serving. I don't meld well.

[HardDrive]

I had jury duty on Monday. During the selection process, I got the boot after only 10 minutes. Lets just say I let the more argumentative angles of my nature to come to the fore

I sat on a jury for 3 weeks on a rape trial a few years ago. It was a brutal, scarring process. The testimony of the victims 14 year old daughter still brings tears to my eyes.