April 8, 2019
I was summoned for jury duty today and tomorrow. I left my house at 8 00 am, but could have allowed extra time for rush hour traffic, parking and security. Another woman asked me directions and we ended up asking a man who led us on our way. There was a long line through security, then to the jury assembly room where we checked in and found a seat. There were a number of jury rooms where some of us watched the information on TV: how important we are, how grateful the county is for our service. etc.
After some waiting a group of about 25 people were called along with a number. In the hall, there are numbers on the floor and each person stands on his/her respective number. I got called along with 15 others about 11:00 am. A sherriff took us to Judge Dugan's courtroom where we waited in line until we were admitted. I'm Juror 9 and sat in the second seat of row 1. This was going to be a two-day civil trial where only six jurors and one alternate were required, and the decision did not need to be unanimous. We were asked many questions and raised our hands if our answer was affirmative. The judge said the next group of questions would take longer than 15 minutes, so we were given instructions for lunch and court would resume at 1:30 PM. I walked to the museum to get my parking ticket validated. I could have gone through the museum and it would have been shorter. It was a beautiful, sunny day. I had a hot dog with my water and found my way back.
We assembled after 1:00 PM until someone opened the door to the jury room. We didn't get summoned until after 2:00 PM and waited again almost 15 minutes to get into the courtroom. The questions continued followed by each of us standing, giving our name, marital status, children and their ages, occupation, where we live and our hobbies. Next the prosecuting attorney asked a series of questions to one I answered that our drunken driving laws are too lenient, especially for repeat offenders. Some other jurors concurred with my remarks. Then the defense attorney asked his questions and singled me out about how I felt about first offenders. I thought first offenders should be given some consideration. When the questions were over, the attorneys and judge went into her chambers and stayed there for about 15 minutes, with instructions that we weren't to talk among ourselves. When they came back, the attorneys passed the jury list back and forth, where each would strike out jurors. Finally the list was given to the judge who told the juror numbers to stand when called. I was not called. We walked back to the jury assembly room where we started our day. I did some knitting, but it was like watching a room of zombies. Most were on their phones, some reading magazines from the rack, others just staring in space. No one talked to each other, with the exception of a woman who asked about Master Gardening as my hobby, and I told her about the plant sale. One large group was called to the desk, and I was the last one called with a small group. My jury duty is over!
I had no trouble finding my way out, but I walked farther than I needed to find my car. I need to write my location.
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