So how was Jury Duty?

How was my fun day of Jury Duty, you ask? Well, let me run down the list. Stay with me to the end, it’ll get good.

1. Show up at 7:15, 30 minutes early. Already, there are 5 people in line ahead of me. I go through the metal detector, no problems, and head up to room 202.
2. I pick up their 1 page informative guide to jury duty, and their 4 question questionnaire sheet. For the question about free mass transportation, I answered that I’d be most interested in taking a limo to jury duty.
3. We got to watch a fun and exciting 30 minute (or maybe 5 hour) video on the joys of being a juror, and what to do and not to do. Who knew we weren’t supposed to investigate anything on our own?
4. All 100+ prospective jurors for the day were shown a box of DVDs brought in by the office staff. He held up a few in his hand, and by a general vote (participation was less than 10 % though), he picked out, in order, “Mr and Mrs Smith”, “Walk the Line”, and “Ray”. I hadn’t seen the first or last one yet, but I had enjoyed Walk the Line once.

They then call out 15 names who get to go into jury selection. I’m not called.

5. I got through another 200 some pages of “American Theocracy” while watching those movies. “Mr and Mrs Smith” was as good as I heard, an enjoyable movie, but nothing too exciting.
6. Lunch time was right about 10 minutes into “Walk the Line”, so I got out to a little mom and pop place called “Lou’s Hamburger” down on Compton Blvd. Not bad, just about the same as every other corner burger place that looks like it’s from the 50s or 60s.
7. Got back at 1:15 (they gave us an hour and a half for lunch! I’m really in the wrong business, since I am used to taking no more than an hour, and often less than 30 minutes [at least, when I’m on my own]). “Walk the Line” was still playing, so I ignored it as I got into my other book “Quicksilver” by Neil Stephenson. I hadn’t touched it since at least May 2005, and I had my Delta plane ticket from when RSI sent me back to North Carolina then stuck as a bookmark. Sure, I’ve read that book several times, but it’s still better than rewatching a movie.
8. “Ray” starts, and this is the movie I’m most interested in seeing. We see about 15 minutes of it, and they have to stop the movie, and turn on closed captioning. The movie is then restarted from the beginning. At this time(about 2pm), they announce that there is only one more jury left to be selected for the day (2 total), and that by 3pm we should all be released.
9. About 2:30, they call for 20 jurors to come back for the second jury.
10. The movie keeps playing. Keeping reading, the best part is just below.

11. Time rolls on by. I’m looking at my watch. Other people are to. It’s 3:15, then 3:30 and finally at 3:52, the head honcho of the juror staff comes to the front of the room, and stops the movie. Ray Charles had just moved to LA with his wife and two kids. I’ll need to see it on tv, or rent it from that spot. Anyway, he says:

A 4 defendant trial that will need all remaining jurors in the room is on the schedule. Take a 30 minute break, then the baliffs will come in and sequester you for a minimum 15 days it takes to select the jury…with a projected trial length of 42 days.

You can imagine all the groans from the prospective jurors.

So make your phone calls now while you have the break, cause it’s the last chance you’re going to get for a long time.

We all sit there in stunned silence for a few moments, then a few people get up and head for the door, flipping out cell phones. I’m about to make a phone call when the main guy coughs into his microphone, and says:

Just kidding folks, you all free to go. Please turn your badges in at the door, and take a ‘I served my jury duty’ note home for work.

A couple people actually clapped at the joke, but I figure he’s gotten so good at giving it day to day, he doesn’t need the encouragement.