I was summonsed to jury duty today and although it was canceled it made me wonder about the process and the promise of a jury of peers. Do I really want to be the peer of someone whose guilt or innocence I would be called to determine? Maybe peer means something different to me than it does in legalese. I actually even looked up the definition of peer. M-W.com defines peer as:
1 : one that is of equal standing with another : equal; especially : one belonging to the same societal group especially based on age, grade, or status
2 archaic : companion
3 a : a member of one of the five ranks (as duke, marquess, earl, viscount, or baron) of the British peerage b : noble 1
I choose noble. If I get a choice of which kind of peer or which definition to choose, I choose noble. Anyway, most people dread jury duty. I can't wait. I am a true crime junkie. As such I don't think I will actually be selected. I imagine the defense will issue a peremptory challenge. They might claim "actual bias." Do you think I watch too much Law & Order. QUIET IN THE COURTROOM.
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I was in a St. Louis District Federal Court Jury Pool for 6 months in the early '90s. I was selected for a trial at the initial gathering. It was very interesting. The case was a convict who had served his time, released was arrested for possession of a firearm. He said it wasn't his and did not know how the ammo got into his pocket. He was found guilty.
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