Live from 14P: Jury Duty

I was called for Jury Duty at the New York Supreme Court and had to report at 8:45 a.m. today.

I arrived at 111 Centre St. in room 364 on time and sat in a room holding roughly 200 people, waiting for instruction. As the room filled up, us early-birds were treated to a movie about the history of the jury system, an introduction to the court system and why we should be honored to be jurors. Whatever, the movie was so irritating. It was pretty low-budget, paid for by the government. The late Ed Bradley, Diane Sawyer and New York Chief Judge Judith Kaye all narrated the film, Bradley’s section, about the history of the jury, stretching from the Greeks with Aristotle through the Roman authority and Medieval “trial by ordeal”, and England and the American Colonies’ systems was by far the best part. Only the very repetitive music was annoying. Also, the screaming track under the section about the “trial by ordeal” was a little gratuitous. The section about the actual trial was performed by a decent but slightly overacting cast putting on a mock trial. As for the last section, we’ll see how “enjoyable” it is and “how much [I] learn” when it happens. I had to postpone because I am a full-time student. But that was not simple. My trip to 60 Centre St. was even more noteworthy.

That story will have to wait as I just typed it all out and then it Didn’t Get Saved thanks to something up with this. Long Story Short: I was told to go one place but then scolded for doing it and I let her know this. So after 45 minutes of waiting in “the wrong” area and then two minutes waiting in “the right” area, in exactly the same chair for the full 47 minutes, June 2 is my new date with the Court.