Vic Smith wrote:
Spent all day yesterday at the Cook County Criminal Courts building.
South side of Chicago.
Not exactly fun, but a useful experience anyway.
I estimate about 500 people were waiting for jury assignments.
Must be a big backlog of trials because of the holidays.
Frankly, I'm happy I wasn't chosen. Took a train and bus to get
there. Got up at 4:30 AM and got back home at 6:15 PM.
And temps here are about to go sub-zero.
About 2 PM, after I thought I might be home free as my panel number
hadn't been called and there were about a hundred of us left, my panel
was called.
Panels are 20 people. They marched 2 panels of us to a courtroom.
Big old courtroom, ala Perry Mason. When I served on a murder trial
jury some years ago, it was in a much smaller more modern courtroom.
The judge called 28 of us to the jury box and front 2 pews for
questioning. I wasn't among them, but all were required to stay.
I'm guessing the 28 were random picks.
Guess experience has taught them there's the possibility they can't
get 14 acceptable jurors from just the 28, so they keep all 40.
The judge gave a fine speech about how jury duty is the most honorable
service to the country outside of military service.
He mentioned that we are the only country on earth that affords the
accused a jury of peers.
He delivered the speech off the cuff and with sincerity.
I'm not ashamed at all to say he moved me, but I'm a sentimental guy.
It wasn't needed anyway. Although I sort of resented getting a
summons because I'm retired and NOBODY tells me what to do,
when I entered the courtroom and saw the defendant sitting at the
defense table, I already knew he deserved having me there, and all
resentment due to my petty wants evaporated.
The judge did all the questioning of the 28 people, trying to
determine if there was a reason they couldn't deliver a fair and
impartial verdict. When he was done the defense went after a couple
of the juror candidates who had revealed they might have prejudice.
There was no problem getting 14 jurors in the end.
It was a 2 1/2 hour process in the courtroom, and a bailiff quietly
passed us our pay checks as it went on.
$17.20. After bus and train fare I profited about 5 bucks.
But I'm glad I was part of it.
What really got me though, is I have a VERY strong feeling I might
have had a problem with the judge's question about impartiality.
The guy was charged with possession with intent to sell between 1 and
15 grams of controlled substances, including cocaine and heroin.
When I heard the charges, first thing I thought was, "Whoa, you got 40
people here to send this guy to the state prison, when a puke like
Bernie Madoff is living free in his $7 million Manhattan apartment?"
I'm a little different than a lot of usenet denizens, as I'm more
likely to lose my temper face-to-face and in person than on usenet, so
I'm also thinking I might get thrown in the slammer for contempt
after I said that to the judge. I was already rehearsing my "Don't
Tase me Bro!" lines.
Luckily I didn't have to find how that would turn out.

--Vic



It's good that you went...we have a few schittheads in here who try to
duck jury duty.