So, after two days on jury duty (ugh!), I've been thinking over what lessons I learned from the experience. Number one: things go a lot smoother once I stop fighting what I can not change. (And it could have been so much worse. I only lost two days of work.)
In no particular order, here are some other things I learned from the experience:
- They take a lot of breaks. We'd sit in court for an hour, and then the judge would call a ten minute break. Another hour, another 15 minutes off.
- An hour and a half for lunch!
- Things look a lot different from the jury box. Everyone was talking to us. And those chairs weren't half bad.
- Apparently, in my location we could do the orientation online. But only if we logged in on Sunday before the week we had to report. So, instead of getting there before 8 AM, I could have shown up after 9. (Instead, I tried to log in the night before. Sigh.)
- It's surprisingly easy to find other things to talk about with the other jurors besides the case. Although, inappropriate jokes did wend their way in as well.
- How to find the jury foreman: appoint the guy who volunteers.
Finally, the biggest thing I took away from the experience is how much I hated coming up with a verdict. That was hard!
Liz, our experiences were similar. It gave me such an appreciation for the justice system. My fellow jurors took it so seriously. I was proud of us. And I only lost two days too. And I liked the long lunches and comfy chairs. And free food for one of our deliberation periods. I'd do it again with less resistance.
ReplyDeleteI was called for jury duty once, but I never had to go through the big selection process since all the cases were settled the days I was there.
ReplyDeleteWhat I remember most is being stuck in a room with all the other potential jurors for four hours at a stretch (the bathroom was adjacent and we weren't allowed to leave except for one fifteen minute smoke break). Maybe it would have been more interesting if I got to take part of a case like you did.