The Other Michael

If you can afford to serve on a jury, please do so.

Unfortunately, most jurisdictions seem to value a citizen's time at about $5-10/day, and at that rate of recompense there are just too many people who really can't afford to do their civic duty for an extended period.

I was on a 5 week trial several years ago (workplace discrimination and assault), but as a Fed I'm paid my full salary to attend, and forgo any compensation from the court.

I wish they'd structure things so that people didn't have incentive to try and wiggle out of doing their civic duty.

This was my first time to be selected to serve as a juror, and I ended up being the foreperson too.

I found the experience to be very interesting.

There sure are some attorneys out there who do a poor job for their clients! It was also interesting to see the interaction between the counsel and the judge - our judge (this was Superior Court) seemed quite sharp, and ran a fairly tight ship.

What got to me were the times when it was VERY obvious that a question wasn't being asked, or an bit of evidence wasn't being submitted. I wanted to do a bit of cross-ex of my own. I was later told that the judge and attorneys get together and decide what evidence/testimony will be used in the trial - since each trial can't run on for months and months they've got to try and come up with a limitation that is fair to both sides.

I thought our jury was populated with a pretty good cross-section of concerned citizens. I do know of juries where someone has obviously formed their opinion before the trial began, and that must be a real pain for the other jurors to deal with.

Anyway, that was my experience, and one of the lessons I took away with me (other than that the court system does seem to work) was that I REALLY DON'T WANT TO END UP IN COURT as a party in a legal action. Those people on the stand were NOT having a good time!

cheers,
Michael

abe smith

A propos of all this "God be my witness" stuff: I notice report in today"s B> GLOBE page A1, of Cardinal Outlaw's yesterday = Pentecost message to all the churches of the Boston Archdiocese; he stated aloud, quote that "before God [sic} " he did not know anything about the priest Shanley's bad record {kept secret in the Archd"s files } until way into the mid'90s.... Be interesting to follow the developments of all-this..... Ought we to assume/believe that clerics never lie, e.g. under oath? Qui vivra verra.

Sephiroth

Today was my first day on jury duty and it was very interesting. However, if I had a job then I really wouldn't want to be on one though, the pay is a joke.

edoggsmooth

"but I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by the heaven, for it is the throne of God;
nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou canst not make one hair white or black.
But let your speech be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: and whatsoever is more than these is of the evil one." (Matthew 5:34-38)

Maybe Christians should read their precious bible a little more carefully.

-ed