Jewelry duty

When I saw the envelope from the Hooter County Sheriff's Department, I knew immediately what it was...and, I had been expecting it. It was a summons for jury duty the week of 20 April and since I have been called for jury duty in every place I have ever lived, it was no surprise. Yes, you read that correctly: I have been called for jury duty in every place I ever lived - twice in North Carolina.

Having an elementary age child is no excuse, so James and I worked out that if he did not hear from me by 2 pm yesterday, he would come home, meet Aidan at the bus and return to work with him. Our hope was that it would be a one day inconvenience, at most.

WRONG! I didn't even have time to start knitting in the jury pool waiting room when I was called in the very first group of potential jurors. I was #19 out of about 48 called in the group, so I knew my chances were good. And, since we were told that there was only one case being heard this week, I knew that those left behind (another 50 or so) in the waiting room would likely be sent home midday.

Once in the courtroom, we learned that it was a civil case, medical malpractice. The judge gave a brief overview of the case, introduced the two sides and let the attorneys get to the business of asking us all manner of questions. And there were a lot of questions, to which we responded by holding up our numbered paddles. After the questions were asked, then each juror was asked follow-up questions. As I heard more and more answers from the train wrecks ahead of me, I knew...I just knew that I was going to be picked.

Before breaking for lunch, the judge excused potential jurors 32-48; I suppose he realized that the pool was going to yield twelve good jurors plus two alternates. After lunch, the questioning resumed and I was certain that I would be picked when the plaintiff's lead attorney asked me only three follow-up questions (one of which was about my previous jury experience) and the lead attorney for the defense asked me none.

Sure enough, around 3:15 pm I learned that I was one of the jurors for this case. And while it throws a wrench into our lives for a week (plus a day, possibly), it is one of the privileges and responsibilities of living in a democracy. If I were involved in a court case, I would want someone like me to sit on the jury - someone who will pay attention, give careful consideration to the evidence and take the job seriously.

When I tried to explain to Aidan where I would be all week, he misunderstood what I said and exclaimed "Jewelry duty? You'll like that!" If only...

Since the county jail is attached to the courthouse and Aidan knows that, I just hope he isn't telling people at school that I'm in jail this week!