I received a Jury Duty questionnaire a few days ago, which reminded me of this blog post I had written in June 2008 that I'd like to share with you!
I had jury duty today. Fun, I know!
Actually, I really wanted to serve on the jury but I was excused. I think it was because I disclosed that I have a friend who is a police officer. The defense attorney looked at me, smiled and politely dismissed me. I was disappointed...but not surprised, after all the attorneys can choose whom they think will best help their clients and I suppose being good friends with a police officer didn't sit well with the defendant.
As I was waiting in the jury lounge I had heard many people complaining about having to be there. One person said that she was called 2-3 years ago and couldn't believe she was called again. Someone else was just upset that he was there.
I understand...I got up extra early this morning to make sure that I could get one of the free juror parking spaces near the courthouse. (As luck would have it, I got the last space.) Then I had to maneuver through a couple of construction zones around the courthouse and had to deal with the fact that I don't know my way around our downtown very well...and that it's located about 30 minutes away from our home.
But still...the complaining bothered me. I guess its because I feel we all have a responsibility to each other in our community. Can you imagine what juries would be like if the only people who served were people who weren't inconvenienced by the whole thing? Scary.
If I were ever in a position (heaven forbid) where I needed a jury trial, I would want the best and the brightest that my town has, to judge me fairly.
At any rate...too often I think we forget that we all have a responsibility to each other. Maybe it's because we all live in a highly suburbanized world where privacy is paramount, and we all go to work in our private cars, spend our hours at work in our private office/cubicles, drive home from work in private cars, and come home to our private houses and maybe if we're bold, we wave to our neighbor as the garage door closes behind us.
Yet...at the end of the day, we are all connected aren't we?
Actually, I really wanted to serve on the jury but I was excused. I think it was because I disclosed that I have a friend who is a police officer. The defense attorney looked at me, smiled and politely dismissed me. I was disappointed...but not surprised, after all the attorneys can choose whom they think will best help their clients and I suppose being good friends with a police officer didn't sit well with the defendant.
As I was waiting in the jury lounge I had heard many people complaining about having to be there. One person said that she was called 2-3 years ago and couldn't believe she was called again. Someone else was just upset that he was there.
I understand...I got up extra early this morning to make sure that I could get one of the free juror parking spaces near the courthouse. (As luck would have it, I got the last space.) Then I had to maneuver through a couple of construction zones around the courthouse and had to deal with the fact that I don't know my way around our downtown very well...and that it's located about 30 minutes away from our home.
But still...the complaining bothered me. I guess its because I feel we all have a responsibility to each other in our community. Can you imagine what juries would be like if the only people who served were people who weren't inconvenienced by the whole thing? Scary.
If I were ever in a position (heaven forbid) where I needed a jury trial, I would want the best and the brightest that my town has, to judge me fairly.
At any rate...too often I think we forget that we all have a responsibility to each other. Maybe it's because we all live in a highly suburbanized world where privacy is paramount, and we all go to work in our private cars, spend our hours at work in our private office/cubicles, drive home from work in private cars, and come home to our private houses and maybe if we're bold, we wave to our neighbor as the garage door closes behind us.
Yet...at the end of the day, we are all connected aren't we?
