Saturday, April 14, 2007

the world's worst juror


(Mr Potsblog in Mufti)
So, day one of Cornell Law School trials and my first day ever as a juror. I am terrible. One look at the defendent, and I sat back and spaced, because he LOOKED guilty as heck. Lawyers and judges tend to say a lot, and I didn't try to follow them much, stared at the paintings and all the other people and such. The law student acting as prosecution was fantastic, further cementing the fact that the dumb guy in the chair was guilty.
Then we had lunch. Despite what the judge said, I gossiped with other jurors and compared notes. We had arson, I sat with somebody who had a juicy murder. Our arson had a dead body too, but anyway....
So, after lunch the defense steps up. The objective and relatively reasonable person I am listened and saw all the holes in the prosecutions' case. It turns out he had NOTHING!!! But, he presented it convincingly, up until lunch. But then after lunch, defense was a very beautiful and quiet and intelligent woman who tore his case to shreds. Did I mention (of course, I am a happily married man of many years) that the defense attorney was very pretty?
So, I am the worlds' worst juror.

5 comments:

Gordo said...

Gary, what makes you think that real jurors are any different from you? Some deep-seated need to have faith in the system? BWAHAHAHAHAHA! Come over to the cynical side, my friend.

Here's a tip: if you're EVER accused of a crime and go to trial, opt for trial by judge alone. At least they have training. :-D

Gordo said...

A jury acquitted OJ Simpson, fer goodness' sake!

Anonymous said...

True enough, Gord, but that is best only if you have a terrible defense lawyer. If, as OJ did, you have the most amazing and theatrical defense atty. on earth, they will get you off.
Funny how easily swayed a person can be: the hard-hitting and convincing prosecutor (whose father is also a prosecutor) vs. the sweet, beautiful, winsome, quietly intelligent defense, wringing your heart strings...
I hope the other jurors learned that you should be skeptical unless the case it totally and truly proven.

Anonymous said...

Dude, you forgot to tell us about lunch!

Mother of Invention said...

I'd be awful too! I'm a sucker and they'd all be good actors. I'd be swayed easily too. I better not ever be chosen! I have twice but it never went further, thank goodness!