Finder of Facts and Applier of The Law (as given by the Judge, of course)

I have to thank the wonderful government of the United States of America for allowing me the privilege of participating in our judicial system. If you think my previous sentence is dripping with sarcasm, then you are wrong. I really do enjoy each opportunity i have to report for jury duty.

For those of you who have done your civic duty and have reported or served as a juror before you probably think i'm crazy for enjoying the experience. And i agree with you. Jury duty isn't exactly convenient and definitely not profitable. In California, if you have to report for more than one day, then you're paid $15/day plus $0.34/mile one-way. So for me, that's $21.10/day, pretty much what i make working for Disney---HA! What i've really enjoyed is learning about our justice system. I'll admit, if i had to sit there for weeks on end, then my learning curve would plateau out and $21.10 wouldn't be enough; but for now i'm still fascinated by observing how the system works.

For four days last week i sat in a court room in the Central Justice Center of the Orange County Superior Court in downtown Santa Ana and i had the opportunity to watch first-hand how a jury is selected for someone on trail for 1st degree murder with special circumstances---pretty much the most heinous crime possible for any one individual, which means the only sentences possible if a guilty verdict is reached is a life sentence without parole or capital punishment. I, and almost 200 other prospective jurors, was asked to fill out a 46 page affidavit and questionnaire with 100 questions to help the judge, the deputy district attorney, and two defense counsels (defendants in all capital punishment cases receive two attorneys, one to focus on the trial and the other to focus just on the grave issue, no pun intended, of the possibility of capital punishment) determine who would be able and available to serve as a juror.

I had to answer questions regarding how i felt about the death penalty, how i felt about a life sentence without the possibility of parole, how i felt about defendants in a trial, how i felt about police officers, etc... Most of the questions i was able to answer quite easily; however, two questions, one about the death penalty and one about life without parole, really made me think. Keep in mind the judge gave us all instructions before we began filling out the questionnaire and somewhere during his instructions the words "answer truthfully and honestly" and "perjury" were mentioned in the same sentence, so i really did think. I came to the amazingly intelligent conclusion that i really have no idea how i feel about the death penalty and about life in prison without parole. I used to be very confident about both and i think i've even voted in favor a capital punishment in the past.

Why was i in favor of capital punishment? Well here are God's instructions...
...to Noah: "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man." Gen 9:6
...to Moses: "He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death." Exo 21:12
...to us: "And again, I say, thou shalt not kill; but he that killeth shall die." D&C 42:19
Is my faith wavering because now i have doubts about my feelings toward the death penalty? I honestly don't know and i don't think i'll have an answer for quite some time.

When i was thinking about what to write down in the questionnaire, part of me just wanted to leave it up to economics. If it's more economical for society to kill people than to keep them in prison for life without parole, then let's kill them all. If it's more economical for society to rehabilitate prisoners and reintroduce them into the public than to keep them in prison for life without parole, then let's reeducate them all. This argument almost makes it too easy, except for the part of who has to figure out the exact cost of everything. I honestly wonder if anyone in that courtroom was thinking these exact same things. Do any of you feel this way or am i sick for even entertaining this idea?

Luckily, jurors don't have to rely on their own personal spiritual and moral compass---we only have to apply the law. And in the great Republic of California, capital punishment is the most severe punishment available and must be considered when a defendant is convicted of 1st degree murder with special circumstances. The key is, and this is why it takes almost 200 potential jurors to find twelve jurors and four alternates, can you put aside all your personal beliefs and feelings and "fairly and impartially weigh the evidence in this case, listen the the Court's instructions, and reach a verdict on all issues in accordance with the Court's instructions?" I guess the answer to the question above for most people is no, because it took us three whole days to find sixteen people. The first day we all filled out the affidavit and questionnaire. The second and third days we spent picking twelve jurors. And the fourth day we picked the four alternate jurors.

Needless to say, after four days, i was dismissed without even being called up and questioned by the judge, deputy DA, or defense counsels. Maybe next time (probably in a couple years) i'll actually have a chance to serve as a juror---i can't wait to blog about that experience.