But before I say anything about that, let's take a look at my history of jury summons:
This was the fourth time I have had jury summons. I have been an adult, by juror standards, for 15 years. Four times in fifteen years!
But...
This is actually my fifth time because I was summoned last month, and I got mixed up on the time and showed up an hour late, so they added me back on the list, and I got summoned again.
So five times in fifteen years.
I don't know anyone who has had jury summons that many times. Most people I've talked to have either never had it or they have had it once. A few people in their older years have had it twice, but not very many.
Anyway, the first three times I was summoned, I didn't have to go in. The first time, they ended up not needing me. The second time, I was due with a baby the month I was summoned, so I was excused, and the third time, I was summoned to a court that dismissed me because I care for children full time (not sure why that's grounds for dismissal, but it said specifically on their paperwork that people who care for children or elderly full-time could be dismissed). So the fourth and fifth summons are the first times I've had to actually go to court.
Let's not talk about the fourth time. Because that's when I was late, and I am still flustered about it. Y'all know I don't do "late."
But today, I went in for my fifth summons.
And I was on time.
I'll go ahead and ruin the end of the story for you... I wasn't selected.
I have mixed feelings about that. Now is not a good time for me to serve on a jury. Arranging my life for the next few days so that I could go to court would have been really hard. But also, deep down, I wanted to be on that jury. I think I would have been good at it, at least for this particular case.
I was surprised by how enjoyable it was to be involved in the selection process. It was fascinating. I liked the judge, and I liked the lawyers. I would love to have seen the trial to the finish.
Maybe it's just the fact that I got to be away from my kids and be in a quiet place with adults for half a day, but I thought jury duty was awesome! And now I hope I get to do it again someday.
But now that I know I enjoy it, I'll probably never get summoned again. Isn't that the way it goes?
1 comment:
I served several years ago on an attempted murder case and it was fascinating. I was called again a few years later and it was a rape case and I was glad I wasn't selected for it. In total I think I've been called six times in my 17 years of eligibility.
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