How you know you're in a small town...

[mpolans]

I was doing a trial observation for a class at the courthouse here in Waco, TX. The attorneys were questioning a group of about 30 potential jurors to empanel a 12 member jury for a dental malpractice case. Check this out:

3 people worked together at the same company.

2 people played racquetball with with plaintiff.

2 people were husband and wife.

2 people were friends with the plaintiff's attorney.

3 people were patients of the defendant dentist.

When asked if being a patient (of 6-7 years) of the defendant dentist would affect his ability to be impartial, one of them said: "Well, I'd sure as hell would hate to find him guilty and go back and sit in his chair. I don't like pain!"

That was almost as good as the voir dire I saw for a murder case. The prosecutor was asking if anyone of the group of 35 or so knew him. About 3-4 raised their hands for DUI or having one of their relatives get busted for something. Said one: "Oh yeah, I know the prosecutor. He got me for DUI back in 2000, but no hard feelings, I deserved it." I think he was one of the selected jurors.

[Dead Buff]

Life is still a joke

[tightloop]

You did not let us know how many went to the same Baptist church together...it being Waco and all, home of Baylor Univ...

[rhino]

So how do you fill a jury under those circumstances? Some towns and counties are so small that it would be impossible to find twelve people (much less a couple of alternates) who aren't connected to the litigants in some way.

Is that a good reason for change of venue?

Or would it be more appropriate to keep it there and embrace the concept of a jury of one's actual peers?

[ima45dv8]

So how do you fill a jury under those circumstances? Some towns and counties are so small that it would be impossible to find twelve people (much less a couple of alternates) who aren't connected to the litigants in some way.

Is that a good reason for change of venue?

Or would it be more appropriate to keep it there and embrace the concept of a jury of one's actual peers?

Damn, I wish I could remember the name of the town, but a couple of years ago there was a great story in the news about a judge frustrated with people skipping out on jury duty. He handed some deputies a handful of notifications, and instructed them to go to the local Wal-Mart and serve them to shoppers. Totally at random. Once served they were to drag them back to the courthouse (kicking and screaming, if need be) to hear some overdue cases before the bench.

Now that's how you "get 'er done!"

[tightloop]

sounds like a violation of my personal rights...law suit pending...

there is no law that says you have to serve on jury duty... and if you really don;t want to serve, it is easy enough to get disqualified...

Some people love getting 6 bucks a day and being bored...I would rather be shooting..

[Patrick Sweeney]

I once had to track down Skeeter Skelton for my boss. (Radio job, morning show, different story) At one point I was calling Hereford, Texas. (Pronounced "Har-ferd") In calling a half-dozen people trying to get a line on him, I realized I was dialing the same numbers over and over:

XXX-XXX-XXyz as in: 403-279-12yz

The X's were the same digits, over and over. The town was so small only the last two digits were different, regardless of who I called.

A few years later I had a chance to drive through Hereford. (Short detour on a trip to Arizona.) You could stand in the center of town and look down any street, and the buildings stopped in a block or two, but the horizon was clearly visible. Flat, dusty, hot and small. Find a jury there.

[tightloop]

Like calling Wink, Tx, home of Roy Orbison...not many folks there...

[rhino]

I want to do jury duty so I can do JURY NULLIFICATION!

[ima45dv8]

I once had to track down Skeeter Skelton for my boss. (Radio job, morning show, different story) At one point I was calling Hereford, Texas. (Pronounced "Har-ferd") In calling a half-dozen people trying to get a line on him, I realized I was dialing the same numbers over and over:

XXX-XXX-XXyz as in: 403-279-12yz

The X's were the same digits, over and over. The town was so small only the last two digits were different, regardless of who I called.

A few years later I had a chance to drive through Hereford. (Short detour on a trip to Arizona.) You could stand in the center of town and look down any street, and the buildings stopped in a block or two, but the horizon was clearly visible. Flat, dusty, hot and small. Find a jury there.

When I was working the oil patch in the early 80s, I lived for a few years in a small town in western Oklahoma called Carter. Real small; less than 500 people. The wierd thing was, EVERYONE that did business with the bank in Carter had the EXACT SAME account number! Yep, they did everything by hand. When you went in the bank, they would call you by your name and record your transaction in this little green pad like they use in restaurants, except it had a second, carbon part so both you and the bank got a copy.

I miss 'em. Once I was shopping for a refrigerator in another town about 40 miles away. I was short on funds so I called the bank to see if I could finance it through them. The manager (who actually answered the phone) said, "No problem. Write a check. I'll have the money in your account in 15 minutes." Next he asked, "When's a good time for you to come by and sign the paperwork? Is tomorrow OK, would would next Monday be better for you?"

[SiG Lady]

I was (for the first time in my life, honest to God!) called to jury duty in November, but had several critical business obligations going on at the time and wrote the county a supplemental document (to accompany the relief-from-jury-duty form) enumerating all the time-critical and disability-critical items pertaining to sitting for a case of indeterminate length. Then came the really cool question... 'Do I happen to know or am friends with anyone in law enforcement...?' Ha! Well, yes, several and I'm also writing your department's quarterly newsletter so have considerable insight into your biz, etc., etc. 48 hours later an excusal (is that a word...?) came in the mail.

Even in a town of 130,000 (and after 12 years here) there's often a lot of overlap.

[mpolans]

sounds like a violation of my personal rights...law suit pending...

there is no law that says you have to serve on jury duty... and if you really don;t want to serve, it is easy enough to get disqualified...

Some people love getting 6 bucks a day and being bored...I would rather be shooting..

Yeah, but some people don't mind doing their civic duty. All the "smart" people skipping out on jury duty is probably one reason why we occasionally hear of crazy verdicts.

Just think, you could be the crucial juror that prevents finding a firearms manufacturer liable in some b.s. lawsuit, thus preventing the creation of damaging precedent that would lead to the withdrawal of all the manufacturers from the civilian market!

Don't think it could happen? Look at the general aviation aircraft market from the late 1970's to present day.

[mpolans]

You did not let us know how many went to the same Baptist church together...it being Waco and all, home of Baylor Univ...

Hey, I resemble that remark! (Baylor Law School 3L) It wasn't asked (not proper to ask specifically about church affiliations), but I bet at least a couple were going to the same church around here.