[SML] Genie AWP-25S

[Dale Farmer]

On 9/26/2014 9:27 AM, Bill Conner via Stagecraft wrote:
> While I think the jury system is a fantastic concept, having been
> called regularly over the past 25 years in Cook County, I have seen
> that many people I would want on a jury, often myself included, ask to
> be excused and are because of the time off from job.  Last one was
> predicted to be a three week case - and it was a very interesting
> product liability issue - but hoe can a person who works 50-60 hours a
> week in an above hourly wage earner job possibly take off three weeks
> for the royal sum of $15 some dollars a day?  The result is that many
> jurors are retired or unemployed.  The one time I did serve, I was
> elected foreman, and spent most of my time explaining what "50%
> meant".  Just the concept of more or less than half was difficulty for
> many in that room.
>
> To suggest that the jury isn't led like sheep by the best lawyer in
> the courtroom is simply disingenuous.
>
> And I'm sure there are folks in the top 10% of earners who are very
> adept at not appearing greedy - but how did they get there otherwise?
> That is the group we are discussing, not the median earner.
>
> I wonder if I can import Tallescopes from the UK where tort law has
> not become such a profit center.
>
Years ago, juries were full of students, unemployed, retirees, 
housewives, and postal and phone company employees.  Because the postal 
workers union and bell system unions had negotiated full base pay for 
workers on jury duty.

   Here in the people's commonwealth of Massachusetts.  People called 
for jury duty have to be paid by their employer full base pay for the 
first three days.  After that, it was optional, but the state paid 50 
bucks per day if your employer didn't pay.   I've been called a few 
times, but never actually served on a live case.   Got partway through 
the empanelment process once, but the lawyers made a deal before we 
actually got to hear anything about the case.  ALmost ended up on a 
grand jury once, which would have been a three month commitment, but 
they got everyone they needed about five persons ahead of me in the line.

     Friend of mine who was on the grand jury in Maryland, I think it 
was.  He said they had five grand juries at any given time empaneled.  
Each one met on a different day of the week, and only had to come back 
before the next week if they had to continue hearing a complex case on a 
second day.  Every fifth week, they had to come in and serve on 
saturdays also.  That way they were only losing one day per week from 
their day job.  Cut way down on job related excuses.  I thought that was 
a particularly elegant way of doing it.

    --Dale