fergie's Diaryland Diary
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JURY DUTY: A Timeline
I must first submit that the old mentality surrounding a jury in a US court is that it�s made up of twelve people who were too stupid to get out of it in the first place. However, new laws in California make it almost impossible to be excused from service.
A Timeline - JURY DUTY
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8:30 � Official juror reporting time
All materials state jurors must arrive to the jury waiting room promptly at 8:30. At about 8:12 I park in the garage without having to pay, one perk of being a juror, as it would have otherwise been $7. I park in B East, which last nights scrabble game quickly turns into �beast.� The courthouse is so old, the elevators from the parking lot still have the numbers that go to the top of the building, but only take passengers as high as the first floor for the new security checkpoint. The security gate�s poor integration into the entrance makes it still look temporary, even though it must be over 10 years old. I arrive on the first floor entrance, and as instructed, my pass also cuts me ahead in the security line, which is out the door and runs down the length of the building. I do not wait for anyone as I pass my bag through the machine, step through the metal detector, and make my way to the elevators, all with the escort of the guard surveying the line.
Official juror reporting time - 8:30
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8:20 � 9:30
Waiting period for remaining jurors to arrive. An announcement is made that once the door is closed no one is to enter the room. Two jurors are allowed in after the doors close at 9:15.
9:30 - 8:20
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9:30 � 9:45
No idea. The two women in charge are in the back office, which only has a small glass window cut into the wall from which they can see the waiting room as they operate. I�m over in the corner closest to the wall with the glass window, so I can�t even see into the other room. I doubt anyone can see them if they�re sitting down. No one has a frigging clue as to what they are doing. For fifteen minutes. An. Hour. And. Fifteen. Minutes.
9:45 - 9:30
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9:45 � 11:30
Orientation and check in begins, which consists of two horribly produced videos staring judges and other staff. We are informed in no uncertain terms that in the United States we �have many privileges other countries do not,� that one of these privileges is for �our voice to be heard� during jury service, and that the �constitution stresses the importance of the right to trial.� Simpleton propaganda. During check in, our juror ID cards are removed from the forms that were mailed to us to fill out, and are turned in to one of the women in charge. Both the ID passes and forms state our names and juror ID numbers. However, only our passes have a bar code on them, and we are then required to stand in line and have our passes, which have just been detached from our jury forms, scanned to confirm our attendance. Court starts at 10:00. Half way through orientation, I decide to get a Pepsi in order to stay awake. The machine spits out quarter so violently it flies out of the bin and hits me in the knee. As much as I can gather, there are only a few �Rules� of the day: We serve one day or one trial, meaning that if we do not get on a jury today we have still completed our duty. We will be there until 5pm even though many of us will not be called at all. I�m not sure how many people are paying attention and wonder how many of them realize that she just estimated 60% of us won�t even be called for jury selection (selection being the process where prospective jurors are interviewed for a trial). If this is the case, and all we�ve done is sit around all day, we�ve still served our �one day, one trial� requirement and have completed our service. In my head I weigh the hope of not being selected vs. taking part in a system I was born to and really have no more control of than anyone else does. On the upside, jurors are paid $15 a day if assigned to a case.
11:30 - 9:45
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11:40 � 11:45
First group is called. Of the approximate 50 people in the waiting area, 14 are randomly chosen for juror selection and leave the room to appear in court.
11:45 - 11:40
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11:45 � 12:00
Break. Jurors are required to return to the waiting room to check in after break. As I step outside the courthouse to get a breath of fresh air, I notice I have traded the stuffy, old shoe odor of the jury waiting room for that of the omnipresent urine smell of downtown Los Angeles.
12:00 - 11:45
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12:00 � 1:30
After returning from break, jurors are released for lunch. Once again outside the building, I realize I�m actually walking in smog, as the tall downtown buildings have trapped all the exhaust from the morning commute. Downtown is full of stores in places they don�t look like they should fit into, buildings crammed together with doors that open into large wear houses which seem larger than they appear on the outside. The gritty air and layers of dirt on the corners of sidewalks has all the ambiance of a
1:30 - 12:00
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1:30 � 3:00
Jurors return from lunch to wait for the next call for selection. I noticed after the break that most everyone returned to their original seating arrangement, even though chairs and couches are lined against the wall and sorted in the middle of the room in no particular order. I wonder if there is sort of a mental assigned seating when many people again return to the same seat after lunch. I�ve decided to move to the back of the room to get a nap on one of the couches. I�m curious to know if the woman I sat beside this morning takes my seat changing personally after she glares at me from across the room, where she now sits completely alone and looking rejected. After awhile, I get an overwhelming feeling of d�j� vu, but realize it�s because I�ve been in the same position, looking at the same people, for over an hour. It�s easy to distract myself with a magazine or by writing something down, but far more fascinating is watching these random people put in a room together almost refuse to interact with one another. Someone who brought cards is playing solitaire. Not a very inviting game. We could�ve had a Go Fish marathon up in the jury waiting room. Another man brought a mini chess game I�ve seen in Sharper Image, which includes ultra-mini chess pieces that magnetically stick to the board and register moves electronically. The game also comes with a computer opponent, which he played instead of finding someone else in the room to match up against. I decide to play my own game, one in my head, called Celebrity Lookalike. Depending on how fast you look, you can make most anyone a famous person. Celebrity lookalikes: Sara Jessica Parker, Bea Author, J. Lo�s sister, Leonard Maltin, the mom from Malcom in the Middle, the leader of SD 6 on Alias, Dear Abby, The �superstar� SNL girl, Leonard Nemoy, and some guy that actually is an actor, but so unknown I can�t even think of what B movie I�ve seen him in on late night cable.
3:00 - 1:30
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3:06 � 3:07
Moderator informs group �Things are looking good. Only an hour and 50 minutes to go.�
3:07 - 3:06
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3:07 � 3:20
Discussion ensues among speculative jurors� weather they will be called. If we are not called, we will not be selected for a case, and our �one day, one case� requirement has been met and we are therefore not required to return. According to the rules of jury service, we cannot be summoned again for at least twelve months.
3:20 - 3:07
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3:30 � 3:31
Three of the jurors who were called from the first and possibly only group to be called for selection return. The guy with the Chess piece drops one of the tiny pawns, and just as a pure observer, I decide to see how long it takes him to figure it out. When he realizes he�s missing a game piece, it�s even more fun to watch him look for it.
3:31 - 3:30
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4:30 � 4:31
Announcement is made that no more jurors are being called for the day and we are being released �early� from our civic duty. Actual applause and cheers are emitted from the group that is so loud I have to get off my cell phone because I can�t hear anything.
4:31 - 4:30
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4:31 � 4:45
Jurors check out as they are called by name in groups of four to turn in their pass and receive their statement of service.
4:45 - 4:31
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4:45 � 4:50
Jurors who have been checked out wait for elevators and cram into the first car that arrives, which stops on almost every floor on the way down to squeeze in another passenger from another floor desperately trying to escape from hell, er, the courthouse.
72% of the group did not even leave the room for selection.
22% of the group were selected for a jury, as three of those called returned to the waiting room. Not even one full jury was assigned for one trial from our group of fifty.
Conclusion: Next time I�ll write �not at this address� on the notice and return it.
4:50 - 4:45
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