Spent today downtown at Superior Court for a jury summons. There were about 44 people in the jurors pool for the particular trial in question; I was #16, so I actually got to sit in one of the the jury box seats (pretty comfy, actually) while the judge asked everyone if they had any problems or conflicts about being a juror.
I mentioned a few things like my graveyard-shift work schedule and being Hilde's primary caregiver, but what probably got me eliminated from the pool was my having worked as a legal secretary for a year, way back when in 1977. Attorneys really hate having jurors who've worked in the legal profession, even that long ago. (That year working in law offices left me with what I hope is a healthy cynicism about the legal profession.) After a jurors' break during which the judge and attorneys privately discussed our responses, I and a number of others were told we wouldn't be needed, and we could go home.
So I got back to the juror parking garage about 4:15, then had to wait until 5:40 for AAA to arrive and change the flat tire on the car. *sigh*
I feel a mingled relief (it would have been a major hassle to try and juggle what was expected to be about a week's trial AND still try to carry as many hours at work as possible AND give Hilde as much time as possible AND get as much sleep as possible; I suspect all of those would have come up short in the end) and disappointment. I've always kind of wanted to serve on a jury; this was about the fifth time I've been called over the years, and about the closest I've actually come to being impaneled.
("The Jury" illustration by Charles Dana Gibson, 1894, via the NYPL Digital Gallery)
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