"The Jodi Arias Death Penalty Retrial - Day 8 - A Juror's Perspective"
It was day 8 of the retrial. I only count those days when the Jury is present. Theoretically, the complete Jury was not assembled due to one Juror being extremely late. The Judge recessed the Jury until next Wednesday.
If you are ever on a Jury, you don't want to be the late one, regardless of circumstances. It is the stuff of Juror nightmares...
I was a Juror on the Marissa DeVault Hammer Killing Trial. My commitment in the search for justice in the brutal murder of Dale Harrell began upon my receipt of a Jury summons notice on January 23, 2014 and concluded on June 6, 2014. It was a six month commitment that put my personal life on hold and it's responsibility held my brain hostage the entire length of time. I can comfortably say that fifteen of us felt the same for even the alternates remain "On Call" during the duration of the trial. (The alternates are chosen by lottery prior to deliberations leaving the standard twelve to make the ultimate decision).
These Juror's are happy to have the week off from duty. Many will not tell their place of employment that they are not working. Some will take the opportunity to work their regular jobs because Jury Duty pay is typically a pittance, pennies to the dollar of their regular income. This is usual as many employers do not pay Jurors their full time pay during Court appointed duty.
My employer readily signed a form saying that I would not be compensated during Jury Duty. I was then allowed the option of being paid by the Court under a "Long Term Jury Fund". The fund is said to pay jurors up to three hundred dollars a day to make up for lost employer pay. I learned quickly that this was somewhat deceiving. A Juror must submit proof of income to the Jury Commissioners Office to receive funds from the Court. The process is long and tedious. It is not unlike an IRS Audit where every penny of income must be accounted for.
I, like the Jurors in this retrial, submitted my proof of all sources of income. I calculated that I was making about $100 a day prior to the trial. The Jury Commissioners Office decided, based on the same numbers I submitted, that I would receive forty dollars per day. By their best calculations, I was making $5 an hour prior to Jury duty.
This is only part of the sacrifice that these Jurors will make in their Civic Duty. Each individual Juror will be happy to make more than the standard twelve dollars a day but will struggle to make ends meet.
Their time off will be advantageous to them. As I said, some will work. Others will make time to enjoy with their family. Some will get housework done and some will get yard work done. Still others will take this time to relax.
The one thing that will not take time off is the Gerbil wheel in their brain as they think of the evidence and events thus far. They have seen Jurors dismissed because of integrity issues. They will see another Juror dismissed because of a family emergency. They have seen Jurors held back and will never know the reason why as Jurors can say nothing about the case to each other until the deliberation room.
These Jurors will not be able to watch the news about the trial during their time off. They will not be able to talk to their friends or family about it. They will not be able to discuss this on Facebook, Tweet about it nor use any other site to talk about the case. Each of them knows that in a high profile case such as this, it is probable and likely that both the defense and prosecution check their activities on line so that the integrity of the Jury is kept safe.
Seventeen Jurors will have pictures of the brutal death of Travis Alexander going through their minds. They will see that it is not only premeditated but it was also Cruel and Heinous thus making this case Death Penalty qualified. Their time off will be marked by the prosecution's case because the defense has barely started presenting their case.
This Jury has seen a "mystery" witness.
I speculate that this mystery witness was Jodi Arias. This witness is the first witness presented by the defense. At most, they have seen this mystery witness for a day to a day and a half, the period when the public and media was illegally locked out (as determined by an Appellate Court this past week).
Some may say that the Jury has seen a flurry of activity in the Gallery. The Gallery refers to the seating where the family of the victim, Travis Alexander, sits. The Gallery has two rows reserved for that of the family of the defendant, Jodi Arias. The rest of the Gallery is filled on one side (the family's side) by the media and the remaining 21 seats are filled by the public.
I spent many months in a Jury box along with fourteen others. We did look at the Gallery but it was of very little concern to us. The Gallery, and the activity of the Gallery, were really off limits for us. We would look at the nuances of those who sat in the Gallery but any thoughts beyond who was in the Gallery would be speculation.
A Juror learns quickly that one cannot speculate. One also cannot let feelings of empathy or sympathy enter their minds. Jurors see the Gallery but it is immaterial to them. They only care about what the prosecution has put before them, what the defense lays on their table and what the Judge instructs them to think or disregard.
All Jurors will search the face of the defendant daily, as if the defendant might reveal something of importance.
I remember in the trial of Marissa DeVault, we searched the defendant's face. We were shocked when we saw her drawing pictures, much like Arias did in her first trial, during testimony.
We could not speculate or hold against her what she did at the defense table. It was not a topic of discussion in the deliberation room because it only would have been speculation. We were glad we followed the Court instructions not to speculate on her activities because we learned at the conclusion of the trial that she was drawing pictures because she was told to keep her hands busy. Prior to her artistic activities, she was interrupting the defense team so much that it was distracting their focus. It was better to keep her distracted.
The time off for the Jury will be a welcome relief to the horrific details they have seen. The time off will go by in a nano-second. For those Jurors who have taken the time to relax, each will find that they can never relax until the conclusion of the trial. They will hope that they are not selected as an alternate down the road. They will wonder what they will collectively decide. They are dying to talk to other Jurors and anyone they can.
The jurors that decide to work during this time will have the challenge of fellow employees asking them tirelessly about the trial. Each Juror will do all they can to make sure the do not discuss the trial. They will be annoyed by those who continue to pursue their thoughts.
The Jury's time off will be marked by their memories of 158 pieces of evidence they saw on the second day. They will carry those last images of Travis Alexander on their back and the monkey will not be released until the end of the trial.
It is an awesome burden. It is a frightening responsibility. It is a test of truth and Justice.
Each juror will spend a week thinking more about Travis Alexander than they will of Jodi Arias because they will feel a greater responsibility for Justice for Travis than Justice for the Defendant.
The Jury is made up of seventeen reasonable human beings.These reasonable people have a great weight on their shoulders.
We will find out who the mystery witness is eventually. The mystery witness will be cross examined by Team Juan Martinez.
We will know who the mystery witness is and I believe it was Jodi Arias herself.
Until next week, have a pleasant week and say a prayer for the family of Travis Alexander because they will carry this burden with them the rest of their lives...
It has been decided. These Facebook Diaries will become my follow up book to "Brain Damage: A Juror's Tale." It will be called, "Brain Damage, Too: A Juror's Perspective - The Jodi Arias Death Penalty Retrial". Thank you all for your support as we search for justice.
Justice for Travis.
Justice for Dale.
Paul A. Sanders, Jr.
The 13th Juror MD @The13thJurorMD (Twitter)
The 13th Juror MD @The13thJurorMD (Twitter)
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Brain+Damage+Paul+Sanders
No comments:
Post a Comment