GETTING LUCKY DAY 27
My experience with the DC judicial system:
1999: My first jury duty. My workplace tells me I will have to take the time off as vacation time. I refuse to and go to the courthouse after about three hours'worth of sleep. I am called to serve on one possible jury. It involves unauthorized use of a vehicle. Apparently the two parties involved know each other -- I think they're even related, for G-d's sake. One of them also doesn't speak English well, so an interpreter is hired. Not only that, this is either a re-trial or an appeal. So a judge, attorney, interpreter and jurors' time, not to mention taxpayers' money are wasted on something which could have easily been solved out of court. I get to go home in a couple hours, but catch a cold shortly after this. I take a sick day, reasoning I might not have got sick if I had had more sleep. That way my employer pays.
2001: I am called again. This time I am working as a freelancer. I am not even called as a potential juror. I think my boss paid me for the day anyway. A couple months later I am called in again, but excused as this is a mistake on the city's part.
2003: I am robbed by a 14-year-old who threatens to murder me. I take it seriously. He is apprehended in about a half hour, but I am not allowed to know his name, where he lives or anything like that. Three or four months later in court I am not allowed to see any of his "trial," but he is allowed to see me on the witness stand and repeatedly hear the 911 tape in which I give my first and last name and cell phone number. Both the prosecution (supposed to be on my side) and the defense ask whether I was raped or had accused the kid of raping me. The defense asks whether I know the difference between rape and robbery and maintains I am not tall enough to properly identify my attacker. I walk back to the subway alone in the dark while this kid is allowed to roam the halls of the court building. The cops are all "too busy." Since he is a juvenile he is not "convicted" but it IS determined he was"involved." I get back the 15 dollars cash the city had held as evidence.
2007: I am again called for jury duty. Severely sleep-deprived, muttering and cursing I drag myself to the Moultrie building and arrive just in time. I am told there are "too many jurors" and am sent home with a promise to be paid $4.00 for my carfare. It didn't even cost me that much to get there. The only thing which disappoints me is that I actually LIKE the food in the courthouse cafeteria. I get a dog and fries at Johnny Rockets instead.
I am grateful that I live in a country which allows every citizen (and even non-citizen) trial by jury. And that I was allowed to go home and sleep a couple hours before going to my evening job.
1999: My first jury duty. My workplace tells me I will have to take the time off as vacation time. I refuse to and go to the courthouse after about three hours'worth of sleep. I am called to serve on one possible jury. It involves unauthorized use of a vehicle. Apparently the two parties involved know each other -- I think they're even related, for G-d's sake. One of them also doesn't speak English well, so an interpreter is hired. Not only that, this is either a re-trial or an appeal. So a judge, attorney, interpreter and jurors' time, not to mention taxpayers' money are wasted on something which could have easily been solved out of court. I get to go home in a couple hours, but catch a cold shortly after this. I take a sick day, reasoning I might not have got sick if I had had more sleep. That way my employer pays.
2001: I am called again. This time I am working as a freelancer. I am not even called as a potential juror. I think my boss paid me for the day anyway. A couple months later I am called in again, but excused as this is a mistake on the city's part.
2003: I am robbed by a 14-year-old who threatens to murder me. I take it seriously. He is apprehended in about a half hour, but I am not allowed to know his name, where he lives or anything like that. Three or four months later in court I am not allowed to see any of his "trial," but he is allowed to see me on the witness stand and repeatedly hear the 911 tape in which I give my first and last name and cell phone number. Both the prosecution (supposed to be on my side) and the defense ask whether I was raped or had accused the kid of raping me. The defense asks whether I know the difference between rape and robbery and maintains I am not tall enough to properly identify my attacker. I walk back to the subway alone in the dark while this kid is allowed to roam the halls of the court building. The cops are all "too busy." Since he is a juvenile he is not "convicted" but it IS determined he was"involved." I get back the 15 dollars cash the city had held as evidence.
2007: I am again called for jury duty. Severely sleep-deprived, muttering and cursing I drag myself to the Moultrie building and arrive just in time. I am told there are "too many jurors" and am sent home with a promise to be paid $4.00 for my carfare. It didn't even cost me that much to get there. The only thing which disappoints me is that I actually LIKE the food in the courthouse cafeteria. I get a dog and fries at Johnny Rockets instead.
I am grateful that I live in a country which allows every citizen (and even non-citizen) trial by jury. And that I was allowed to go home and sleep a couple hours before going to my evening job.
posted by Numerologist at 10:08 PM
<< Home