I’ve been on a jury at least 4 times in my life….starting in Indianapolis, Ind when I was in my mid twenties….I’ll never forget what it was like and how I felt. A guy was on trial for burglary and attempted murder of a store owner. The owner had survived and was healing in the local hospital. The defendant had a long list of people who came forth to say he was nowhere near the scene….they included friends and family and former girlfriends and current girlfriends, etc.  All of these people made statements under oath that were full of holes and none could keep their stories straight to even coincide with others.  Still they needed to be heard.  The defendant was found upstairs hiding in a closet, above the store, with the gun.  The injured storekeeper was to testify, but suddenly the case finished and he was not there.  A jury only can use the information it is given…..and so the judgement was guilty considering all the other information provided sans the poor man who was shot.  (later, after we were excused, we found that the storekeeper had taken a turn for the worse, and was not allowed to come to court)….However, we did our job, and based upon what we heard and discussed he was found guilty.  He did yell and scream and threaten us, but he was hauled off to prison anyhow.

I tell you this story, not because it was totally exciting or because everyone got a star, but because we were asked to be part of a jury in a democratic society that says you are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. We all know that it doesn’t work perfectly….but being a juror does make it work compared to courts in other countries.   Think of the girl who disappeared in the islands….think of the two going to court for murder in Italy…. then think of our jury system.  Yes, it is tedious. Yes it takes away a few days from our wonderful jobs.  Yes, we’d sometimes rather be doing something else, BUT THAT IS ALL BESIDE THE POINT!!

A juror is part of freedom…..a juror is an honorable way of being free. A juror is part of a fair and unbiased search for the right for people who have been wronged….on either side of the table in front of the judge.  I am appalled at the excuses and statements I hear from those who receive the call for jury duty. (We’ll talk excuses later) Why do people creep away and hide with all kinds of excuses, when they look in the mirror every day and acclaim what fine upstanding citizens they are.  They are the first to discuss right and wrong, politically miss-managed funds and departments, the lack of morals or being honorable in daily business people they deal with, and the way the ‘world is going’ because of unscrupulous people. BUT….when the call comes……they almost become the people they are asked to be a jury for.  They are too old, they can’t get the bus, they work nights, they have a cold, they dislike anyone of color, they have a family member who influences them, and on and on.  What a pity…….

And the courts have to listen to this every day….the courts, the servants whose job it is to give anyone a fair trial….continually have to endure these types every day.  When did ‘responsible’ become such a dirty word? When did ‘slinking’ out the door after lying to the judge become such an honorable thing to do?  I am appalled and amazed at the statements I have heard when some says they received a call for jury.

The courts have always treated us graciously….In California it is one day or one trial.  You don’t even have to go to the court house unless your group number is called, and you can stay at home and check, every morning and evening.    There are nice rooms to wait in, there are TVs and books and games, and food. You are given at least an hour and maybe two for lunch and have breaks. One is treated with great respect as a possible juror, not to mention in the court room.  The judge is gracious, he/she explains fully the trial time and dates and length.  Valid excuses are readily accepted and there is always a ‘thank you’.

When in court, you are the ‘chosen’…you are there to listen, to reason, to understand, to take notes, to ask questions of the judge, and to deliberate as a unit of fairness. There is no one more ‘looked up to’  than you, the jury.And still prospective jurors scoff .

Now we’ll discuss excuses……real ones……and some we have no control over….1.  My job gives me a rough time…..what a shame, but true. Employers need to be fined for messing with their employees when it comes to jury duty.  Pay is full, for as long as it takes, period.

2.   The state doesn’t pay enough for me to leave work…..true…and that needs to be addressed….maybe by combining work and state payments.

3. No one else can do the job but me……I wish, but it ain’t true.  I once sat by a fellow juror who mathematically helped plans fly full of baggage, people, and fuel, each and every flight.   Someone did his job, when he was gone…(and I thought that was dang important)

4. I have a problem with people of color……GET OVER IT! and learn that right is right and wrong is wrong regardless of color. You might learn a lot from our fellow jurors on that!

Now school finals, and working each and every night can be valid, but don’t plan your vacation during your jury duty…..just to get out of it.  AND, if you do have valid reasons, they court will be more than happy to give you another date that works for you!

So, in closing this soapbox one-sided discussion, I repeat, with all honesty. I have never felt more proud than to serve as a juror….to give the guy who is in the right, a reward for being right, and to serve a dose of  “guilty’ to the person who wronged him.  Maybe it doesn’t make everything perfect again, but it is the way Americans try to do what is right, each and every day, in court rooms all over this land.