Jury duty

[Garand Hunter]

I actually got thru the ask this ask that stuff phase and went over to the jury seats, I had to piss like hell was at my feet ! We got to the challenge phase and the defense atty wanted me off the jury and I couldn,t get to the restroom fast enuff ! Like 30 plus years ago.

Psalm 1

[Elgatodeacero]

Jury duty in civil and criminal cases is the most important obligation citizens have.

Jurors are the final check and balance on a criminal Justice system that is overcharging people or charging people for actions that should not be crimes.

Jurors are also critical to holding insurance companies (there is always an insurance company secretly hiding behind a defendant in civil cases - the judge is required to keep this reality a secret) responsible for their terrible ?delay and deny? tactics in civil personal injury cases, and for delivering fairness in contract disputes, discrimination cases, etc.

Anyone that feels they are too busy or too jaded to sit as a juror should pray to God Almighty that you are not charged by a Marxist district attorney for murder when you were defending your life, or seriously injured by a careless driver.

It is true that many attorneys will strike current or former government employees (whether police, fire, clerical, etc.) from their jury pool, sometimes these jurors have valuable insight and experience that can help a party to a case.

[PeteH]

It is true that many attorneys will strike current or former government employees (whether police, fire, clerical, etc.) from their jury pool, sometimes these jurors have valuable insight and experience that can help a party to a case.

All defense attorneys will excuse a former/retired police officer and their family members.

[Desert Dan]

I retired in 2006, and it seems as though every year, I get a Jury notice. Twice, I have had to go in only to be sent home when they find me to be a retired LEO. I'm 78, and I guess I hope they keep calling me (and putting me on stand-by) cause that means I'm still alive!

[flyer898]

I am retired almost five years now. No jury summons since I retired.
I have been summoned to jury service three times; I was excused twice and served once.
I have tried a great many civil and criminal cases to a jury. I think a jury is very likely to sift the baloney and find the facts. In my experience a jury is the best and most important defense against government oppression.
I consider jury service an honor and a high duty.

[Tyke8319]

Got called for jury duty on a domestic abuse case some years ago after I retired. The def. pled not guilty. During the voir dire the defense asked me if I could be impartial, to wit I answered, "I doubt it. In the agency I retired from, if the Def. was arrested it's because he committed the battery. It's pretty certain he did it." I was dismissed and I suspect a new jury was selected.

[Dutch3]

Jury duty in civil and criminal cases is the most important obligation citizens have.

Jurors are the final check and balance on a criminal Justice system that is overcharging people or charging people for actions that should not be crimes.

Jurors are also critical to holding insurance companies (there is always an insurance company secretly hiding behind a defendant in civil cases - the judge is required to keep this reality a secret) responsible for their terrible ?delay and deny? tactics in civil personal injury cases, and for delivering fairness in contract disputes, discrimination cases, etc.

Anyone that feels they are too busy or too jaded to sit as a juror should pray to God Almighty that you are not charged by a Marxist district attorney for murder when you were defending your life, or seriously injured by a careless driver.

It is true that many attorneys will strike current or former government employees (whether police, fire, clerical, etc.) from their jury pool, sometimes these jurors have valuable insight and experience that can help a party to a case.

Not LEO here, but have served on several juries in the past 40 years. I have to disagree that the jury is the final check and balance in the justice system.

The judge is the final check. The judge determines the sentence for a convicted individual, and the sentence can vary widely depending on who the defendant is. I have seen it personally.

The last time I sat on a jury, we convicted a former Paradise police officer of felony involuntary manslaughter and also found it to be true he had used a firearm in the commission of the felony. At that time, the finding of the use of a firearm carried a mandatory 10 year sentence enhancement. The judge sentenced him to 180 days in jail - of which he served 90. WTF?

About a year later, another man was charged with burglarizing a liquor store in Oroville during the Oroville Dam spillway failure/crisis/evacuation/fiasco. He was charged with the burglary and also that he had used a shotgun to breach the glass door of the store to gain entry.

He was tried and convicted for the burglary and the jury found it true he had used a firearm in the commission of the crime.

The same judge as in the previous case sentenced that man to 14 years in prison. 4 years for the burglary and an additional 10 years for the use of the firearm.

So, if you are a police officer and feloniously kill a human being using using a firearm, you serve 90 days.

If you are a regular guy and kill nothing other than a glass door, you get 14 years.

Check. This according to Judge Reilley of the Butte County Superior Court.

I can assure you all that the next time I get called for jury duty, I will be dismissed, as there is obviously no 'justice' in this county.

/rant

[TrailerparkTrash]

Not LEO here, but have served on several juries in the past 40 years. I have to disagree that the jury is the final check and balance in the justice system.

The judge is the final check. The judge determines the sentence for a convicted individual, and the sentence can vary widely depending on who the defendant is. I have seen it personally.

The last time I sat on a jury, we convicted a former Paradise police officer of felony involuntary manslaughter and also found it to be true he had used a firearm in the commission of the felony. At that time, the finding of the use of a firearm carried a mandatory 10 year sentence enhancement. The judge sentenced him to 180 days in jail - of which he served 90. WTF?

About a year later, another man was charged with burglarizing a liquor store in Oroville during the Oroville Dam spillway failure/crisis/evacuation/fiasco. He was charged with the burglary and also that he had used a shotgun to breach the glass door of the store to gain entry.

He was tried and convicted for the burglary and the jury found it true he had used a firearm in the commission of the crime.

The same judge as in the previous case sentenced that man to 14 years in prison. 4 years for the burglary and an additional 10 years for the use of the firearm.

So, if you are a police officer and feloniously kill a human being using using a firearm, you serve 90 days.

If you are a regular guy and kill nothing other than a glass door, you get 14 years.

Check. This according to Judge Reilley of the Butte County Superior Court.

I can assure you all that the next time I get called for jury duty, I will be dismissed, as there is obviously no 'justice' in this county.

/rant

There?s COUNTLESS upon COUNTLESS criminal cases of people getting injustice sentencing for committing the same crime and one?s current/former career profession has nothing to do with the actual rendered punishment that was handed out. Don?t think cops are the only ones to get off ?free? while non cops always get the hammer. Countless habitual criminals literally walk out of courthouses every day across America, because a judge felt sorry for them and the majority of those criminals set free were NOT even cops.

[pacrat]

There?s COUNTLESS upon COUNTLESS criminal cases of people getting injustice sentencing for committing the same crime and one?s current/former career profession has nothing to do with the actual rendered punishment that was handed out. Don?t think cops are the only ones to get off ?free? while non cops always get the hammer. Countless habitual criminals literally walk out of courthouses every day across America, because a judge felt sorry for them and the majority of those criminals set free were NOT even cops.

TPT:
Got to agree with you on this subject. Dutch3 described the machinations of a bias judge. Them and leftist woke DAs are what is broken. The system isn't perfect because it relies on the integrity of the people within the system.

I was under the impression that if found guilty, mandatory sentence guidelines, removed judicial discretion on a charge.

Is that not so?

[ldsnet]

The last 2 times I was called was a completely wasted days....never left the meeting room.
The sad part, I know I will NEVER make a jury; Spent 30 years as an LE Volunteer and 3 years as a Navy Legal officer.... no way one of the 2 sides doesn't strike me from the jury pool just because of my previous experience.

[Dutch3]

TPT:
Got to agree with you on this subject. Dutch3 described the machinations of a bias judge. Them and leftist woke DAs are what is broken. The system isn't perfect because it relies on the integrity of the people within the system.

I was under the impression that if found guilty, mandatory sentence guidelines, removed judicial discretion on a charge.

Is that not so?

I was also under the impression that mandatory sentence guidelines were mandatory. Apparently, that is not the case.

It brings a question to the entire trial by jury process. As a juror, I have always done the job as assigned. But it is useless if the judge can ignore the law.

What's the point of even having a jury?

As I said previously, the next time I am called for jury service I will elaborate on the reasons I cannot be an impartial juror due to the defects in our judicial system. I am sure I will be instantly dismissed.

Stay safe, all.

[999nPRC]

I was also under the impression that mandatory sentence guidelines were mandatory. Apparently, that is not the case.

It brings a question to the entire trial by jury process. As a juror, I have always done the job as assigned. But it is useless if the judge can ignore the law.

What's the point of even having a jury?

As I said previously, the next time I am called for jury service I will elaborate on the reasons I cannot be an impartial juror due to the defects in our judicial system. I am sure I will be instantly dismissed.

Stay safe, all.

Was that the case where the officer shot the guy coming out of the sunroof, failed to call it in and was seen picking up hie brass?

[Sailormilan2]

Last time I made to the jury box, the Judge asked me if there was any reason why I shouldn't be on the jury. I replied that I was a retired LEO, and had spent 15 years working in the very building we were in, and knew many of the Attorneys in the building. The Judge just laughed at me and said, "So what".
Once I turned 70, I returned the Jury notice with the explanation that I was now 70, and had couple of medical issues that made me unfit for jury duty. I have not been called back.

[Dutch3]

Was that the case where the officer shot the guy coming out of the sunroof, failed to call it in and was seen picking up hie brass?

Yes. And failed to render any aid to the TC victims. Not only the one he had shot, but also the woman dying on the ground right in front of him.

Was busy with his flashlight looking for his brass.

Technically, the driver was attempting to exit through the left side window, as the vehicle had rolled multiple times and came to rest on its right side.

As this thread is about jury duty, all I can say is that as a juror you can do your job as assigned, but the judge might be an idiot.

[sigstroker]

Not LEO here, but have served on several juries in the past 40 years. I have to disagree that the jury is the final check and balance in the justice system.

The judge is the final check. The judge determines the sentence for a convicted individual, and the sentence can vary widely depending on who the defendant is. I have seen it personally.

The last time I sat on a jury, we convicted a former Paradise police officer of felony involuntary manslaughter and also found it to be true he had used a firearm in the commission of the felony. At that time, the finding of the use of a firearm carried a mandatory 10 year sentence enhancement. The judge sentenced him to 180 days in jail - of which he served 90. WTF?

About a year later, another man was charged with burglarizing a liquor store in Oroville during the Oroville Dam spillway failure/crisis/evacuation/fiasco. He was charged with the burglary and also that he had used a shotgun to breach the glass door of the store to gain entry.

He was tried and convicted for the burglary and the jury found it true he had used a firearm in the commission of the crime.

The same judge as in the previous case sentenced that man to 14 years in prison. 4 years for the burglary and an additional 10 years for the use of the firearm.

So, if you are a police officer and feloniously kill a human being using using a firearm, you serve 90 days.

If you are a regular guy and kill nothing other than a glass door, you get 14 years.

Check. This according to Judge Reilley of the Butte County Superior Court.

I can assure you all that the next time I get called for jury duty, I will be dismissed, as there is obviously no 'justice' in this county.

/rant

Not only that, I think a judge can set aside the jury verdict completely.