Monday, January 26, 2009
I had an amusing post a bit ago about how to get out of jury duty (Stink). That post has earned me visits from all over the US and Canada. It seems like a lot of people are looking for ways to disqualify themselves.
That bothers me.
Yeah, jury selection is usually badly managed. You get your notice and go to the room, and then you sit there for hours, knowing full well that when they finally get to you you'll be disqualified because you know the defendant, or you were once in a serious automobile accident, or whatever the automatic disqualifier is this time. But you're not allowed to say that up front. You have to wait until they ask you, which is rather arrogant of the lawyers.
I always wondered why it would be so impossible to send out a questionnaire, or hand you the questionnaire when you arrive and get rid of the obviously unsuitable candidates right away.
It annoys me that people try so hard to get out of it. Yeah, I understand you have to take off work, but there should be some way to compensate for lost salary. The system doesn't do that well. Maybe it should be treated like national guard time off. I consider it a responsibility of citizenship.
It annoys me when I hear people say, "How would you like to be tried by a jury of people too stupid to get out of jury duty?", even as they themselves are working hard to get out. If I were ever on trial, I'd want a jury of intelligent, thoughtful, interested people, who are not impressed with their part in a drama and are willing to make decisions based on facts, not allegiance or emotion. I think every accused deserves that, and I think we all have a responsibility to provide it. If we want to get it, we should be willing to give it.
But many people consider themselves too important to be bothered to provide a fair trial to a fellow citizen, and I think that's terrible.
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Airport bars have introduced a new drink called "The Sully". It's 2 shots of Grey Goose with a splash of water and a twist.
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5 comments:
You don't skip work if you work for TeddyJ. they continue to pay you.
I evidently disqualify myself by having an opinion on everything.
I wasn't trying to get out of jury duty but once when I was at the voir dire, I told the attorneys I was a mystery writer. Out!
(oooh...verification word: demath. So true.)
It's not always that people think they're too important to serve on jury duty -- sometimes they're just too busy. I had a business that could not be left to the employees during the summer months. I was called up for jury duty during the summer. I said I would gladly serve in the winter but could not shut my business down as I had contracts that had to be fulfilled. Well, too bad for me. I was forced to do it. I ended up losing a job that cost me several thousand dollars and the judge was so proud of himself he couldn't stand it. At that point I was so pissed off I would have convicted the guy to the gas chamber for running a stop sign if I could have. When you're called you don't know how long it will be for and it's not so bad when you work for a large company and they can have someone fill in for you but in my case I got screwed. I will NEVER serve again as I've now taken myself off the voting roles because I can't afford another hit. It's really a sore spot for me.
Anon - "I was so pissed off I would have convicted the guy to the gas chamber for running a stop sign if I could have."
1) As I said, the system should be able to compensate _ perhaps, in your case, by allowing you to serve in the winter.
2) Nobody wants someone on a jury who is going to act on emotion.
Your complaints are valid, but they apply to the system as it *IS*. I'd like to see the system make it easier to do our duty, as it should be.
And yeah, there are people who consider themselves too important. They're the ones who consider anyone who does serve to be stupid.
Around here, they get you from voting lists, state income tax, property tax, driver's license, and I don't know what all else. I've been called in the county I live in, and in the next county over where I happened to own some real estate.
What really bugs me is that I would not be allowed to serve in that other county, but I still have to show up and sit until I'm interviewed, at which point I can say, "I don't live here. Can I go home now?"
"They" do treat us as if our time is not valuable. As if we are just cattle.
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