Thank you for reliving this experience for us, Jim. To be exposed to so much evil week after week, month after month must surely take a toll. It was encouraging to read of your respect for the professionalism of the law enforcement agencies and the District Attorneys involved. Also, I'm not surprised that you were chosen as foreman. Kudos my friend.
Hey, the thanks go to you for reading and commenting, Jim - and thanks for the kind words too. At the end of the stint, believe it or not, sure I was relieved but also a little sad that it had ended. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. Honestly though, it was one of those times in life where you feel you actually did something worthwhile. It's been done by better men than me for sure and countless times decade after decade, so its not like something new. It was new to me though and it sure was an eye opener on how things work in our society as well as how things could be so much worse if we didn't have the system we do, faults and all. Appreciate you bud. - Jim
Your reflections on personal relationships within the jury mirrored my experiences. I got close to some people on the various juries, but after a few intense days of shared experience, we separated and I couldn't tell you one of their names now. Most of the time, the sentencing phase was more testy than than determining guilt or innocence. First degree felonies have a range of punishment from 5 to 99 years in prison. It took a lot of negotiating and reasoning to arrive at a consensus. The last jury I sat on was sequestered durng deliberations. We spent one night in a hotel together, no television, phones, radios, etc. We gathered in the bailiff's room to watch TV. It felt like a slumber party of sorts. The women had their freshly washed hair bound up in towels and many wore robes.
Those jury experiences were humbling as we bore the responsibility of finding justice for both the victim and the accused. In the process, I discovered why defendants opt for plea bargains rather than put their fate in the hands of a jury. Thanks for writing about your experiences on the grand jury, Jim. Your observations validated many of mine from jury service.
Thanks again K.C. , at different times I felt like a coach, ringmaster, referee, motivational speaker, taskmaster - and a nun with a ruler. It was a long 18 months. I'll say it again, the D.A. was one smart cookie. My assistant foreman and I were pretty tight. We had to be on the same page. Appreciate you reading Part 2. - Jim
Lovely conclusion. I'm sorry to hear about what you experienced. I hope justice was served to the three people you mentioned and that it provided some peace for those involved.
I worked 15 years for an expert witness whose specialty was vehicular accidents. Most cases involved life-altering injury or death. Sadly, there are a lot of people who have to wait a long time to get justice for their loved ones. Being a willing participant as a juror is one way the average person can help alleviate that suffering.
Jennifer, yes it's the least we can do as citizens to take a small part in the judicial process. I appreciate your generous comments very much but it was a blessing in disguise actually. Didn't feel like it at the time but it was. Thanks so much for reading. - Jim
That seems like a very intense 18 months! It sounds like the justice system benefited greatly from having you in place for all of the cases you oversaw.
Shandi, it was that. I greatly appreciate you reading and commenting. Thank you for the kind comments, but believe me, I was the one who benefitted. It taught me a great many things about what and who we tend to take for granted. Thanks again, Jim
Such a moving story, Jim. I learned a lot from it - not only procedural, but moral issues, and personal power. Thanks so much for writing this memoir. I do believe that your life really was changed by that experience.
Sharron, you don't know how much I appreciate you reading and commenting. It always means a great deal. To be honest I don't know what drove me to write this, but I'm glad I did. It was a special thing, a horrible thing many times, but special nonetheless - if that makes any sense at all. Appreciate you. - Jim
Thanks so much for reading Alison. I'll be honest, I can be kind of a Billy Badass sometimes but that 18 months took a toll and it shook me right to the core. You start to worry even more than normal about all kinds of things. You start to wonder about the true nature of human beings. All sorts of doubts creep in. How the law enforcement people, at whatever level, in whatever role, do it - day in and day out and the toughness that it takes to stay sane and professional, humbled me. Somebody has to do it and they do. Otherwise, where would we be? I appreciate your loyal reading of my attempts at writing so much. - Jim
Extraordinary story Jim. You put tears in my eyes because your reminded me of my dad. He was a cop for 35 years, and some evenings he indeed hugged us very hard.
Oh Martine, that means so much to me. Thank you so much for that sensitive and heartfelt comment - and for reading this piece to begin with. It kind of came out of nowhere but once I started writing it just flowed. Wish it was always like that, right? Thanks again - Jim
Thanks Clay, appreciate that. It was unexpectedly emotional for me as well, at the time. A very unique mix of feelings. Real horror, not fiction, of seeing and hearing details no one really wants to know. It's impossible not to feel uneasy dread but a sense of self purpose too, disgust while also contributing in a small way to something crucial in society and recognizing the very real existence of the true evil that humans are capable of. As I mentioned, even though it was years ago, it still stands as one of the most memorable periods of my life. Memorable for the good and bad both. I actually recommend to people not shying away from jury duty, because I think it is a duty in a way and a real world education of the fine line between chaos and justice. Like strong bitter medicine helps fight sickness. Anyway, I'm babbling. Once again, very much appreciate you reading. - Jim
Your service is just as impressive to read about the second time around, Jim
Jury duty is definitely is a learning experience. From the cases I sat on, I learned that DA's only go to trial if they have a solid case.
Thanks for reading and commenting a second time K.C. - much, much appreciated. - Jim
Wow, what an experience. Thank you for your service!
Thank you for reliving this experience for us, Jim. To be exposed to so much evil week after week, month after month must surely take a toll. It was encouraging to read of your respect for the professionalism of the law enforcement agencies and the District Attorneys involved. Also, I'm not surprised that you were chosen as foreman. Kudos my friend.
Hey, the thanks go to you for reading and commenting, Jim - and thanks for the kind words too. At the end of the stint, believe it or not, sure I was relieved but also a little sad that it had ended. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. Honestly though, it was one of those times in life where you feel you actually did something worthwhile. It's been done by better men than me for sure and countless times decade after decade, so its not like something new. It was new to me though and it sure was an eye opener on how things work in our society as well as how things could be so much worse if we didn't have the system we do, faults and all. Appreciate you bud. - Jim
Your reflections on personal relationships within the jury mirrored my experiences. I got close to some people on the various juries, but after a few intense days of shared experience, we separated and I couldn't tell you one of their names now. Most of the time, the sentencing phase was more testy than than determining guilt or innocence. First degree felonies have a range of punishment from 5 to 99 years in prison. It took a lot of negotiating and reasoning to arrive at a consensus. The last jury I sat on was sequestered durng deliberations. We spent one night in a hotel together, no television, phones, radios, etc. We gathered in the bailiff's room to watch TV. It felt like a slumber party of sorts. The women had their freshly washed hair bound up in towels and many wore robes.
Those jury experiences were humbling as we bore the responsibility of finding justice for both the victim and the accused. In the process, I discovered why defendants opt for plea bargains rather than put their fate in the hands of a jury. Thanks for writing about your experiences on the grand jury, Jim. Your observations validated many of mine from jury service.
Thanks again K.C. , at different times I felt like a coach, ringmaster, referee, motivational speaker, taskmaster - and a nun with a ruler. It was a long 18 months. I'll say it again, the D.A. was one smart cookie. My assistant foreman and I were pretty tight. We had to be on the same page. Appreciate you reading Part 2. - Jim
Lovely conclusion. I'm sorry to hear about what you experienced. I hope justice was served to the three people you mentioned and that it provided some peace for those involved.
I worked 15 years for an expert witness whose specialty was vehicular accidents. Most cases involved life-altering injury or death. Sadly, there are a lot of people who have to wait a long time to get justice for their loved ones. Being a willing participant as a juror is one way the average person can help alleviate that suffering.
Jennifer, yes it's the least we can do as citizens to take a small part in the judicial process. I appreciate your generous comments very much but it was a blessing in disguise actually. Didn't feel like it at the time but it was. Thanks so much for reading. - Jim
That seems like a very intense 18 months! It sounds like the justice system benefited greatly from having you in place for all of the cases you oversaw.
Shandi, it was that. I greatly appreciate you reading and commenting. Thank you for the kind comments, but believe me, I was the one who benefitted. It taught me a great many things about what and who we tend to take for granted. Thanks again, Jim
Such a moving story, Jim. I learned a lot from it - not only procedural, but moral issues, and personal power. Thanks so much for writing this memoir. I do believe that your life really was changed by that experience.
Sharron, you don't know how much I appreciate you reading and commenting. It always means a great deal. To be honest I don't know what drove me to write this, but I'm glad I did. It was a special thing, a horrible thing many times, but special nonetheless - if that makes any sense at all. Appreciate you. - Jim
Wow. I can’t imagine what it’s like being those cops and having to do that work. Thank God for the people who do. No words for these tragedies.
Thanks so much for reading Alison. I'll be honest, I can be kind of a Billy Badass sometimes but that 18 months took a toll and it shook me right to the core. You start to worry even more than normal about all kinds of things. You start to wonder about the true nature of human beings. All sorts of doubts creep in. How the law enforcement people, at whatever level, in whatever role, do it - day in and day out and the toughness that it takes to stay sane and professional, humbled me. Somebody has to do it and they do. Otherwise, where would we be? I appreciate your loyal reading of my attempts at writing so much. - Jim
Extraordinary story Jim. You put tears in my eyes because your reminded me of my dad. He was a cop for 35 years, and some evenings he indeed hugged us very hard.
Oh Martine, that means so much to me. Thank you so much for that sensitive and heartfelt comment - and for reading this piece to begin with. It kind of came out of nowhere but once I started writing it just flowed. Wish it was always like that, right? Thanks again - Jim
Thank you, Kristine. Very much appreciated. - Jim
Thanks Clay, appreciate that. It was unexpectedly emotional for me as well, at the time. A very unique mix of feelings. Real horror, not fiction, of seeing and hearing details no one really wants to know. It's impossible not to feel uneasy dread but a sense of self purpose too, disgust while also contributing in a small way to something crucial in society and recognizing the very real existence of the true evil that humans are capable of. As I mentioned, even though it was years ago, it still stands as one of the most memorable periods of my life. Memorable for the good and bad both. I actually recommend to people not shying away from jury duty, because I think it is a duty in a way and a real world education of the fine line between chaos and justice. Like strong bitter medicine helps fight sickness. Anyway, I'm babbling. Once again, very much appreciate you reading. - Jim