After nearly a month of trial and 3 days of deliberations, we the jury could not come to a conclusion. I am extremely saddened that this experience ended this way. These people waited 4 years to get this case to court and they still don't have a resolution. The wind has been knocked out of my sails and I feel burned out and just plain sad. When one of the lawyers said, "Thank you for trying," that was it for me. I couldn't exit that courtroom fast enough, my eyes just filled up in an instant.
This experience was so interesting to me, as you've read. I looked forward to coming everyday until we reached deliberations. Things got ugly and tense right away. The only positive thing I can say about the outcome (or lack thereof) is that everyone truly stuck to their guns. No one was willing to waver from their beliefs. At least both sides of this case can know that we battled until the bitter end and really gave this a great deal of thought and effort. They didn't get a jury that was willing to just do whatever needed to be done to get the heck outta there. We wanted to do what was right.
I can't help but think however, about the fact that they have to go through this process all over again. I'd love to know what the new jury thinks. I wonder if I'll ever know.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Juror #3
That's me. Juror #3. And this has been my home away from home for the last 2 weeks-
You guessed it, I'm on jury duty. And I have to be honest. I'm loving it! In fact, I will even go so far as to say that I will miss it when it ends. I'm sure my boss won't. I feel like being a juror IS my job. I have pretty much the same hours, same lunch break, similar commute length. But the pay is definitely not the same. As a juror, we get paid $5 a day. Fortunately, I hope, my real job will pay me for performing my civic duty. I always knew I'd like jury duty and I was right. It's just so exciting! And I have the best seat in the house! All the sidebars, objections, and evidence! To be a part of all this is really incredible. Along with it however comes a major responsibility. This trial was years and many dollars in the making. And many more dollars are on the line. I have been taking copious notes - 45 pages so far. I want to be 100% sure when deliberation time comes that I'm making the right decision. The trial will probably end in a week or so and I'll return to my normal life. I hope to stay in touch with some of the jurors, we've already become like a little family. So many different ages and personalities thrown together by chance. I've learned a lot from them and this experience as a whole. So should you get that dreaded jury duty notice in the mail, look at is as an opportunity to learn new things, meet new people, and to make a difference. I have enjoyed this more than most of the classes I took in college!
You guessed it, I'm on jury duty. And I have to be honest. I'm loving it! In fact, I will even go so far as to say that I will miss it when it ends. I'm sure my boss won't. I feel like being a juror IS my job. I have pretty much the same hours, same lunch break, similar commute length. But the pay is definitely not the same. As a juror, we get paid $5 a day. Fortunately, I hope, my real job will pay me for performing my civic duty. I always knew I'd like jury duty and I was right. It's just so exciting! And I have the best seat in the house! All the sidebars, objections, and evidence! To be a part of all this is really incredible. Along with it however comes a major responsibility. This trial was years and many dollars in the making. And many more dollars are on the line. I have been taking copious notes - 45 pages so far. I want to be 100% sure when deliberation time comes that I'm making the right decision. The trial will probably end in a week or so and I'll return to my normal life. I hope to stay in touch with some of the jurors, we've already become like a little family. So many different ages and personalities thrown together by chance. I've learned a lot from them and this experience as a whole. So should you get that dreaded jury duty notice in the mail, look at is as an opportunity to learn new things, meet new people, and to make a difference. I have enjoyed this more than most of the classes I took in college!
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