For using a knife to kill the victim. Well... My first time on a jury was a whopper. Alcohol, meth use, sex, lies, theft, murder. Autopsy photos, diagrams of blood splatter, vicious stabbings of the victim multiple times, blood saturation of the mattress. Whooo boy.
Luckily it went quickly as the police had the confession on tape and all that was really being deliberated was whether or not there was a possiblity of self-defense. The conversation I didn't get to participate in, being an alternate juror.
Did you know being an alternate juror sucks? You go through the trial and then sit in the jury attendance room waiting for a verdict. At least they let us come back for the reading of the verdict.
Not being allowed THAT would have been like being given a mystery novel with the last page missing....
6 comments:
You are a better citizen than I am -- I was supposed to do jury duty in July, but I just didn't show up for jury selection and they never contacted me again :p
I hear you, JJ. I didn't serve for I while. They quit asking me for the while I raised my stepkids and then my own. Now I'm ready to do my civic duty... until they put me on too many of these types of cases. It was beginning to affect my dreams.
The US courts are coming down harder on those who throw the notices out or give weird excuses. But watching the jury being chosen, I saw the lawyers toss most of those who were vocal about their doubts.
It was an interesting experience. I liked the judge very much.
ellroon, had you lived in Texas, you could have served on a murder jury only if you were "death-qualified." You could have served on a third-strike sale-of-marijuana jury only if you were willing to impose a penalty of 20 years to life. The short version: in Texas, you are permitted to serve on a criminal jury only if you swear that you are capable of imposing the maximum penalty for the crime.
As a result of my living in the death penalty capital of the nation (that's Harris County, TX, i.e., Houston), the all-time champion jailer of drug criminals (that's also Harris County), I am repeatedly called downtown, only to be rejected for jury service time and time again. I have served on a total of four juries in my life, one criminal and three civil; only one was of any real significance.
As unpleasant as your case was, please do realize that at least you got to serve in a real case. I know that may be small comfort, but the alternative is truly exasperating; trust me on this one.
Holy crap, Steve...Death-qualified? Sounds like the Death-eaters. Do you get a snake tattoo up your forearm? Texas must have over-crowded prisons for sure. I can see why you are against the death penalty with those bozos in charge.
It was interesting to hear the judge tell us not to even consider the sentencing, just to consider the facts, though he did assure us this was not a death sentence case.
After realizing I could handle the horrible murder scene photos, the thing that struck me was how pathetic the defendant was. He was truly a stupid man and he caused a truly unnecessary death.
No snake tattoo, ellroon; hell, I don't even know how to cast the Dark Mark. "Death-qualified" is the phrase casually used to describe a potential juror in a capital murder case who is willing to assess the death penalty if the criteria are met. If you oppose the death penalty altogether, or even if you think it must be reserved for the most heinous of murders, possibly not including the case at hand, you may not serve as a juror in those cases. I spent a day and a half of my life in a huge pool of potential jurors, filling out a 100+ item questionnaire which was used, overnight, to determine that I could not serve because I am not "death-qualified."
Texas has surprisingly many enlightened laws... e.g., felons who have completed their sentences may have their voting rights restored... but Texas is a civil liberties nightmare when it comes to murder trials and drug case trials.
Another brutal regime needing to be overthrown....
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