Jury Duty
I had an interesting experience, as you could infer from the title.
Weeks ago, I received a letter to fulfill my civic service, so I postponed it to today, when I could actually serve my duty.
I had no idea where the court was, in relation to the library nearby, but after circling around the block twice, I found some parking near the library and walked to the courthouse. The security guard x-rayed my belongings and directed me to the jury room.
Inside, I was amused to find around 40 people seated with books or magazines in their hands. Perhaps others were looking around, confused at their reasons for being there, whilst a few individuals conversed. The room was medium-sized, perhaps the size of a classroom fitting 50 or so people. I also have to mention that about 1 out of 8 people dressed up in professional clothing (I suppose most did not care - yes, I was one of them).
The administration lady motioned for me to come forward, so I filled out a sheet asking about my qualifications and then sat back down. Whilst I was filling out the paper, I overheard some old Caucasian folks talking about China. They asked this lady about her trip to China and made a mini-tirade about the food, saying it was horrible. They continued to talk about the attractions in China and I tuned out. I sat back in my seat and began to read again.
I thought about yesternight, when I was heavily researching "how to get out of jury duty." There were many interesting things you could say to seem heavily-biased and immovable. If you wanted to serve a jury, you would need objectivity and an open mind. Also, there's the concept of "jury nullification," which gives much power to those on a jury to proclaim that they find the defendent innocent, even when all evidence presented illustrates that he or she is actually GUILTY. The act of jury nullification is a commentary on the potential jury member's power, that he or she could just disagree with the law, and based on that, vote innocent. However, having 12 members on a jury would be the thing to offset such power.
I went back to my reading and read about 10 pages, when the lady introduced herself and played two videos - one about the experience of a jury member (I have to admit, the video made it seem somewhat interesting) and the procedure for the court proceedings. Then, the lady let us out for lunch around 12:00pm. I walked back to the library and picked out some books for my summer reading. I sat on a cushiony bench and attempted to sleep in strange positions, but it did not work out quite so well. After trying to rest my eyes for 30 minutes, I started to read my book again until I was supposed to go back to the jury room.
I passed by the District Attorney's office to find a man and woman talking. I did not pay much attention to them. I sat down and attempted to read, while an old western show with twisted music played in the background. About 20 minutes after I sat down and read some more, the judge came into the room. Although he was in full professional dress, he didn't look like a judge (probably because he wasn't sitting on his pedestal). He then announced some news: the case has been resolved and we are free to go. He also mentioned his appreciation for having the bulk of people show up to serve their civil duties. We applauded this great announcement and cheerfully left.
The only bad thing about jury duty is the waiting. I spent about 3 hours or more in the vicinity of the courtroom, waiting/reading, only to use up 15 minutes total listening to announcements and watching videos.
Hey, it's not everyday that you get to determine someone's fate. Maybe I'll want to serve on a jury some other day in the future, when I have the time...
Weeks ago, I received a letter to fulfill my civic service, so I postponed it to today, when I could actually serve my duty.
I had no idea where the court was, in relation to the library nearby, but after circling around the block twice, I found some parking near the library and walked to the courthouse. The security guard x-rayed my belongings and directed me to the jury room.
Inside, I was amused to find around 40 people seated with books or magazines in their hands. Perhaps others were looking around, confused at their reasons for being there, whilst a few individuals conversed. The room was medium-sized, perhaps the size of a classroom fitting 50 or so people. I also have to mention that about 1 out of 8 people dressed up in professional clothing (I suppose most did not care - yes, I was one of them).
The administration lady motioned for me to come forward, so I filled out a sheet asking about my qualifications and then sat back down. Whilst I was filling out the paper, I overheard some old Caucasian folks talking about China. They asked this lady about her trip to China and made a mini-tirade about the food, saying it was horrible. They continued to talk about the attractions in China and I tuned out. I sat back in my seat and began to read again.
I thought about yesternight, when I was heavily researching "how to get out of jury duty." There were many interesting things you could say to seem heavily-biased and immovable. If you wanted to serve a jury, you would need objectivity and an open mind. Also, there's the concept of "jury nullification," which gives much power to those on a jury to proclaim that they find the defendent innocent, even when all evidence presented illustrates that he or she is actually GUILTY. The act of jury nullification is a commentary on the potential jury member's power, that he or she could just disagree with the law, and based on that, vote innocent. However, having 12 members on a jury would be the thing to offset such power.
I went back to my reading and read about 10 pages, when the lady introduced herself and played two videos - one about the experience of a jury member (I have to admit, the video made it seem somewhat interesting) and the procedure for the court proceedings. Then, the lady let us out for lunch around 12:00pm. I walked back to the library and picked out some books for my summer reading. I sat on a cushiony bench and attempted to sleep in strange positions, but it did not work out quite so well. After trying to rest my eyes for 30 minutes, I started to read my book again until I was supposed to go back to the jury room.
I passed by the District Attorney's office to find a man and woman talking. I did not pay much attention to them. I sat down and attempted to read, while an old western show with twisted music played in the background. About 20 minutes after I sat down and read some more, the judge came into the room. Although he was in full professional dress, he didn't look like a judge (probably because he wasn't sitting on his pedestal). He then announced some news: the case has been resolved and we are free to go. He also mentioned his appreciation for having the bulk of people show up to serve their civil duties. We applauded this great announcement and cheerfully left.
The only bad thing about jury duty is the waiting. I spent about 3 hours or more in the vicinity of the courtroom, waiting/reading, only to use up 15 minutes total listening to announcements and watching videos.
Hey, it's not everyday that you get to determine someone's fate. Maybe I'll want to serve on a jury some other day in the future, when I have the time...
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