Jury duty and other issues of civil rights
Jun. 3rd, 2008 10:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mojosmomAs I had mentioned, I had jury duty yesterday. It was instructive. The folks at the Jury Commission were very nice and helpful, and I brought along Ulysses as well as my Italian homework to see me through all the waiting. Seemed like I was the only person who wanted to be there; everyone else was grumpy about it. Sad, really.
I was part of a group that got sent up to a courtroom in the afternoon (though, sadly, I never got into the box to be voir dired). The judge had an odd method of doing the questioning, but I find that judges all have their quirks that way: some do panels of four, some of six, but this guy racked fourteen (12 + 2 alternates) and questioned all at once. But the strangest thing was that the prosecutor asked a couple of throwaway questions of two or three jurors and the defense attorney didn't ask any! I was shocked! This wasn't any petty little case, either. It was an attempt murder and aggravated battery with a firearm, both of which carry stiff penalties. (Never being one to leave well enough alone, I checked the guy out when I got back to the office this morning. He's on a writ from the penitentiary and has been down a couple of times, so he is definitely not looking at a minimum sentence.) Also, the defendant's African-American and it was a very pale bunch of jurors. So how do you not do any voir dire? I'm flummoxed. To the point where I am tempted to track down the attorney later this week (when the trial will be over) and ask her what she was thinking.
Tonight I watched a documentary on WTTW, our local public television station, Out & Proud in Chicago, about the history of Chicago's LGBT community. Not the greatest piece of filmmaking in the world, but definitely insightful, educational and important. Then I hopped on the computer to check the election news, and found this. I'm truly disgusted.
I was part of a group that got sent up to a courtroom in the afternoon (though, sadly, I never got into the box to be voir dired). The judge had an odd method of doing the questioning, but I find that judges all have their quirks that way: some do panels of four, some of six, but this guy racked fourteen (12 + 2 alternates) and questioned all at once. But the strangest thing was that the prosecutor asked a couple of throwaway questions of two or three jurors and the defense attorney didn't ask any! I was shocked! This wasn't any petty little case, either. It was an attempt murder and aggravated battery with a firearm, both of which carry stiff penalties. (Never being one to leave well enough alone, I checked the guy out when I got back to the office this morning. He's on a writ from the penitentiary and has been down a couple of times, so he is definitely not looking at a minimum sentence.) Also, the defendant's African-American and it was a very pale bunch of jurors. So how do you not do any voir dire? I'm flummoxed. To the point where I am tempted to track down the attorney later this week (when the trial will be over) and ask her what she was thinking.
Tonight I watched a documentary on WTTW, our local public television station, Out & Proud in Chicago, about the history of Chicago's LGBT community. Not the greatest piece of filmmaking in the world, but definitely insightful, educational and important. Then I hopped on the computer to check the election news, and found this. I'm truly disgusted.
