Had jury duty this week.

It is a murder trial. Thank goodness the clerk did not call my name before they filled all the seats. 12 jurors and 2 alternates from a pool of 120 citizens. We were down to about 18 jurors left before both sides were satisfied. Opening statements were today and the expect the trial to go into the first week of December. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. Lots of twists and turns. There was a witness list of 86 people that could possible be called on to testify. Lots of lawyers and police on the list.

:patriot:

The defendant plead out before the actual trial started, which makes me wonder how often it happens that way.

I was picked for a jury for a trial on someone accused of assaulting a cop. Fortunately, the defendant plea-bargained before the trial. I was relieved.

I've been on jury duty twice.
Both times the criminal case defendant took/copped a guilty plea after we'd sat through days of testimony, just before we started to deliberate.

A defense attorney explained that to me.
He said that there are so many opportunities for the prosecution to screw up and for other things to go wrong with a trial, resulting in at least a mistrial, and, at best, a dismissal of charges.

If the 'perp' is likely to be convicted anyway, he has nothing (or not much, anyway) to lose by letting the trial progress, hoping for that screw up.
:shrug:

a lot. burden being with the state -- if defendant thinks they proved it then they plea it out.

can't say as I blame them -- one Judge well versed in the law is likely to be as merciful as 12 yahoos from my county :shrug:


;) :D :hi: :patriot:

If so, they ask if you could give a death sentence. If you say no, they can't put you on the jury.

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... her Hispanic yoga-instructor boyfriend.
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I mention the races as we had a bigot/homophobe on the jury and it mattered to him.
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It was fascinating.
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And I was SUPREMELY disappointed in some of my "peers" -- ESPECIALLY the self-employed
contractors. It seemed to become to them MUCH more important how much money they were
losing than the fact that a young man had died and that a young woman might spend the rest
of her life in jail or, horrifically... might be guilty yet get away clean with it.
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Hung jury. They re-tried her with a conviction of SECOND degree murder. We quit with a tally
of 6 or 7 1st degree, 4 or 5 2nd, and 1 manslaughter (the homophobe bigot, who up 'til we
started talking about complaining to the judge about him had been holding out for "not guilty" --
and the man wasn't gay... the defendant claimed anal rape had been the cause of her
shooting him substantially later with her pistol -- AND claiming it was an accident caused
by his grabbing the gun and pulling it TOWARDS his forehead begging for her to kill him).
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I found his parents after the trial and hugged them both, apologizing for not being
able to bring them some sort of closure/justice.
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I can never read about races without laughing over asian woodcarver. details. details. where would we be without the details ;)

i was on a three week gang murder trial about 8 years ago. THREE WEEKS!! it was very interesting, but I wouldn't want to be on another trial that long again.

coincidentally, i got called again and i have to contact the court tonite after 5 to see if I need to come in next week. pretty sure i will have to serve as it's thanksgiving week and they will have a lack of jurors. i don't mind jury duty, but during a holiday week when i'm cooking???? :(

back for 2 years. and next week they will only be having court on Mon and Tues.

Once for municipal, and the next year for federal. I also served on a grand jury several years later, so I think I may have served on all the different kinds. I know people sometimes complain about having to go (I did, too) but looking back, it was really interesting and I'm actually glad I got to do it. :)

on jury for a week. It was interesting to watch and participate in the process. I learned a lot then and I learned a lot this week. Jury selection is quite scientific in an unscientific sort of way ;)

edited because I left out a word :dunce:

How would you answer this question:

"If you had to vote right now, would you vote guilty or not guilty?"

about the case in question?

he is INNOCENT until proven quilty... show me the evidence!

:thumbsup:

You should have been picked.

More often than not people will say, I can't say until I've heard the evidence.

They skip right over that presumed innocent part.

I was one on here that said the DA did NOT prove the case against Casey Anthony.

I was not called up. There were about 18 of us left to call up when they came to terms with the 12 and 2 alternates.

actually, though -- I doubt I would have passed given the questions they were asking.

I know too many lawyers in this town and also other questions being asked would have precluded me.

edited for typos.

In the big room waiting for your name to be called. I had to go out and by some ear-plugs. I've had to report often and every time they have that crap on the TV.

:thumbsup: