Jury Service Matters. How you conduct yourself as a juror matters.

[Stinky The Clown]

I wonder if any of Zimmo's jurors are having second thoughts about setting him free, armed to the teeth?

The man was an obvious time bomb.

So today we have (at least) his third incidence of domestic violence. Add his (in my personal view) murder of Trayvon Martin, and he is (at least) a four time offender.

He is a violent man who committed obvious acts of violence yet a jury let him go free, and armed to the teeth.

When we are called to serve on a juror, it is assuredly because someone was aggrieved and someone was accused of aggrieving. Sorting out who is a significant matter to at least the parties to the trial. The parties, by the way, often include We The People.

Sometimes the result of a jury's decision is trifling. More often, however, it matters. The murder trial of George Zimmerman is a case in point. The jury's decision, after that media circus trial, had consequences.

I am put in mind of that moron juror who spoke right after the trial, proud of her decision, only to speak again in the days that followed that maybe her decision wasn't so right.

Juries matter.

Jurors have an OBLIGATION to take their charge seriously.

[msanthrope]

1. Why do we still not know who B37 is? nt

[Stinky The Clown]

2. I have no problem with anonymity. I have a HUGE issue with moroninnity.

[NV Whino]

3. I think most of them had second thoughts

I think most of them wanted to convict him. The evidence, as submitted, was not sufficient for a conviction. No need to blame the jury, here. Give it a bit more time. He will hang himself.

[bluestate10]

5. Just pray that Zimmerman doesn't kill another innocent person while in the process of

hanging himself.

[NV Whino]

11. Well, prayer are not us

But I agree with you.

[Mira]

13. I second that sentiment heartily n/t

[angstlessk]

4. I was on jury service and the 'forman'..which was a woman suggested

we say whether the prosecutor or the defense chose us as jurors...I objected and claimed it would prejudice our decision...

She shut up...

[Stinky The Clown]

9. Team sports. Always team sports.

The concept has ruined governing and now seems to be ruining jury service.

[X_Digger]

6. Yes, jury service matters. Those who take the judge's instructions and follow the rules..

.. and don't decide cases on what they think a defendant might do in the future- are good jurors.

Jurors who decide based on their emotional response to a case? Make the jury system suck. Having been on a few juries with some of these kinds of idiots, I can say that they pervert the judicial system.

[JVS]

10. +1

[Captain Stern]

15. Well said.

The idea that jurors should decide cases based on what they think the accused might do in the future is absurd.

A juror's only obligation is to render a decision on the case at hand, based only on the evidence presented by the prosecution and defense.

[LittleBlue]

21. Perfectly said

The jury cannot convict based on what they think he might do if he's released. Zim got lucky that the circumstances were what they were, like OJ. I cannot see him ending up anywhere but prison.

[MindPilot]

7. No it doesn't -- it is a sham.

I've been on nine panels, never a jury. (I should get a permanent excuse at 10) They do not want people who think for themselves, any kind of critical thinking is identified and dismissed. A jury is a group of people who a) have the time which excludes most working people, and b) are nice, compliant sit down, shut up and do what you're told types.

I'm convinced that the outcome of most trials is predetermined....gotta meet those quotas for CCA & GEO.

[TeamPooka]

8. cant help thinking of the Odd Couple episode where Felix convinces the jury to vote not guilty

and the guy attacks people after getting stuck with Felix in the elevator on the way out.

[Yo_Mama]

12. Yeah, well the prosecution has the obligation to prove their case.

There are enough people who have been in jail for decades, sometimes even on death row, who have been proved innocent later to suggest to a reasonable person that one should decide the case on the basis of evidence, not whether one "knows" that the accused is a bad person.

I think you are way off base. Mind you, I do think and I did think that Zimmerman was not right and that his account of the night was suspect, but I said I wouldn't blame the jurors before the trial and after the little I did read of it, I still won't. I think the prosecutors boffled it.

Jurors don't control the process. Yes, the guilty do sometimes walk, but that's the price of not putting a bunch of innocent people in jail! There's MORE than enough of that.

[riverwalker]

14. during Z's jury selection

I read the transcripts of the questions they asked, they weeded out anyone who read newspapers, watched the news, or were aware of current events. The dumber they were, the more they were desired.

[Vattel]

16. I think the jury in that case made the right call, but that is a minority view here.

[arcane1]

17. I still can't believe the court allowed a freakin' CARTOON of the defendant's point of view.

That's some crazy right there.

[KamaAina]

18. I thought you meant DU juries!

[madinmaryland]

22. It definitely applies to the Dallas Cowboys Haters on DU!!

[KamaAina]

23. Show me one instance where a Cowpies post has gone to a jury

and I will deign to dignify that with a response.

[badtoworse]

19. The one time I was called, I was excused when I told them I read the Wall Street Journal

I don't know whether it was the defense or the prosecuting attorney that wanted to know what newspapers I read, but does it matter? Draw your own conclusions as to what kind of people that attorney wanted on the jury.

[dem in texas]

20. If you have any smarts, you will be struck from the jury pool

I have been in many jury pools over the years and always get struck, once on a civil case because I had been sued when I was an officer of a corporation. One trial was a capital murder trial for a young man who looked like he was fifteen years old. I was in the final group and I asked how he old was when the crime was committed. The Judge said he was not permitted to tell (this is Texas) and I was stuck from the jury.

The reason I asked was the young man looked so young and he had no criminal record. He had driven the getaway car for a robbery where someone was shot and killed. In Texas if you participate in a crime that results in death, you are equally guilty even if you did not pull the gun.

When I got home, I looked up the crime in the Dallas Morning News archive and found that the young man was only 16 when the crime was committed. Would you have sent this person to prison for life? Not this lady!