Jury Duty

el Fenomeno wrote: »

Drugs case years ago. Lad convicted over a drugs haul worth a couple of million. Daughter was in the car with him when they were busted, so it was her trial.

Two things didn't sit well with me.

(1) The prosecution's case was absolutely appalling, and was presented even worse. I always thought if a case went to court, it was likely the prosecution had a strong case. Definitely not in this instance. The defence tore apart the forensics team at one point.

(2) Fellow jurors were more interested in getting home. A couple of them said as much, saying they'd "vote" whatever the rest of us did so we could leave as quickly as possible.

Anyway, the judge instructed us that she was throwing the case out after a few days so we didn't have to decide in the end.

You don't know how much evidence was suppressed when you weren't present.

You don't get to trial if a district judge doesn't think there's a case to answer

skooterblue2 wrote: »

That is the same thing as above. There are much more productive ways of showing civic responsibility than sitting in court.

It's important. It's a cornerstone of our entire criminal justice system. Along with judicial separation.

bnt

I'm not an Irish citizen, which (according to this) disqualifies me from jury duty here. I wonder why that is? I've been in Dublin for 20 years now, so I think I'd be able to understand what the skanger in the dock was trying to say, mostly. I wouldn't try to get out of it: I'd do it just for the experience, even if the experience was sitting on my bum for a fortnight. :rolleyes:

Niner leprauchan wrote: »

It's important. It's a cornerstone of our entire criminal justice system. Along with judicial separation.

How many are real cases and how many are Damo reoffending for the 235th time in 5 years? Want to be a hero? Go be a scouts leader/soccer coach and prevent young Damo and Chantal from going down the drugs route.

"It's a civic duty, if your family was the victim of a horrendous crime, would you be happy that prospective jurors were using every excuse under the sun to weasel out of it.
I find your views, and that of many others on the thread as that of a traitor to their country."

It is not my civic duty to do Jury duty if I have been excused for valid reasons. How would you feel if you were in the dock and me and 11 other members of my battalion turned up for Jury duty?
Being at college and taking an unspecified time off to do jury duty is not fair on me or my studies that the college will not set down replacement classes for me to catch up on. As for having a disability? That is not my fault and dont have the focus to serve on a trial. They were all legitimate excuses not to serve at a particular time.

Traitor? is a very strong word. I am not perverting the cause of justice or trying to subvert the government. Do you think the Irish State has been out of line? Trust me if I could buy a new passport and had my degree in the morning I would be gone(it can be done quite easily). I dont feel any loyalty to the Irish state, various Governments has sold out our sovereignty over the years. You are looking in the wrong place for traitors.

Yes my family was the victim of the state many years ago and three female judges thought she was wronged and the defence for the states was ineptly prepared. Our barrister and solicitor has the poor sap on the ropes and the judges had little time for his incompetence.

Spanish Eyes

I posted earlier in the thread, have severe hearing loss and could not do it now.

Anyway I have now been excused and what a relief that is &#55357;&#56837;

Served on a jury in the past before the hearing loss, it was an interesting experience, especially Sussing out the jury members and who was upfront wishing to be foreman. I have now been summoned 5 times so far.

Spanish Eyes wrote: »

Served on a jury in the past before the hearing loss, it was an interesting experience, especially Sussing out the jury members and who was upfront wishing to be foreman. I have now been summoned 5 times so far.

I would like to do it but the proper time has never presented itself. I imagine there is nothing worse than having a jury member who is malcontent and being disruptive.

jaxxx

I'd like to get one of them letters. Just so I know people know I exist

*starts singing 'All by myself' by Celine Dion

jaxxx wrote: »

I'd like to get one of them letters. Just so I know people know I exist

*starts singing 'All by myself' by Celine Dion

Really? You are one of 100 random people picked with no guarantee of selection for the final jury. You have more chance of getting a job in McDonalds than being picked for jury duty.

If you are feeling lonely, I will meet up with you for a cup of coffee and that will be me performing my civic duty since I dont do jury duty.

skooterblue2 wrote: »

Once again, if you want to get out of it read between the lines. It is very possible if you are motivated. Only idiots and people with a deep interest in law serve on juries.

I got a couple of paid days off work, nice dinners, and a few morning strolls in the sunny Phoenix park, had some good craic too, no interest in the law and above average IQ. It seems to be a bit of a myth that everybody dodges jury duty.

begbysback wrote: »

no interest in the law and above average IQ. It seems to be a bit of a myth that everybody dodges jury duty.

You were only lecturing me about the rights of offenders a few pages back. So that holds no water!

JustAThought

I was called a few times and wrote the letters from work to get out of it. About 10 years later I was called again and really wanted to do it and see how it ll worked- my boss gave me a letter to post to get out if it but I fancied a week off work so ‘forgot’ to post it and was selected!!! He’s still trying to work out how his golden charm letter didn’t work that time!

In short it was at first interesting, the daily process quickly became languid and a bore, the absolute waste of money and resources was shocking, and the security and facilities for jurors even worse. We ended up being chosen for a serious care with a high profile dangerous family, we were routinely followed being checked out and identified from the open public gallery to the door we exited from into the public street to our cars No underground security carpark for jurors.

I didn’t drive directly to my home a single night I served but looped and zig zagged around the county, as I didn’t want the risk of them knowing where I lived or where my family lived, there was jury intimidation and stalking and zero actual intervention or resources for us - just lip service from the judge and a room full of tight lipped strung out juriors who knew well in advance of the evidence being presented how it would end.
I would NEVER do it again.

Scrotes who havn’t seen the inside of a church since they collected their Holy Communion money swearing their honour on a bible.

Jurors refusing to swear in on the bible because it had no meaning for them and asking to be allowed swear on collections of spiritual poetry or the communist manifesto. I kid you not.

On top of all of that being locked in a room in sweltering heat hour after hour with no air conditioning and one stinking toilet opening into the room that everyone had to use and share with no air extraction and nothing left to the imagination when someone had to use the (one) toilet during ‘deliberations’.

The first thing we ALL did when we got to our deliberation room with our A5 spiral issue pads and bic biros was to whip out our iphones and google the mans name - and read out his violent past and lengthy string of a lifetime of vicious and violent crimes and endless litany of suspended sentences. That wiped the smile off all our faces.

As for the ‘jury of peers’ - there were one or two people innthat room so slow they must have been either seriously mentally deficient or frighteningly medicated. Having served in a jury I would be seriously frightened to sit before one and be judged. And thats before I mention the guy who got the security to put his bets on from the canteen every day and spent the afternoon reading the results in the Herald and doing the crossword. He knew what way he was voting as did most of the room - no need for discussion or any reflection on the days ‘work’.

Our bosses were obliged to pay us for the time we spent there ( 3 1/2 weeks).

Never again and never willingly.

When you see the massive massive amounts of public money that is absolutely squandered daily in this process - and thats before solicitors or judges fees - you will grind your teeth in rage every time you hear ‘suspended sentence’ for serious and violent crimes and violent deaths.

If criminals were trying to set up a system to benefit themselves and provide a courtly pantomime of absurdity they would invent our Itish system.

skooterblue2 wrote: »

You were only lecturing me about the rights of offenders a few pages back. So that holds no water!

So, believing offenders are entitled to have rights, and sitting on a jury is incompatible?

And I don’t lecture, I merely make a point.

begbysback wrote: »

So, believing offenders are entitled to have rights, and sitting on a jury is incompatible?

And I don’t lecture, I merely make a point.

Believing offenders have rights and saying they have no interest in the workings of the law do not make sense.

skooterblue2 wrote: »

Believing offenders have rights and saying they have no interest in the workings of the law do not make sense.

Whether somebody, who is accused of committing a crime, is entitled to rights or not is more of a moral dilemma than a legal question. For only if it’s seen as morally correct in a society is it then entered into law.

begbysback wrote: »

Whether somebody, who is accused of committing a crime, is entitled to rights or not is more of a moral dilemma than a legal question. For only if it’s seen as morally correct in a society is it then entered into law.

That sounds like someone with an interest in law. I hate to point you but you have comment in the last `12 hours on Connor McGregor sexual assault, teen getting done for with no priors for possession of cannabis and twice on Jury duty....... what do the members of the jury say? I am guessing you wanted to study law but never got a chance or you had some interaction with a guard?

skooterblue2 wrote: »

That sounds like someone with an interest in law. I hate to point you but you have comment in the last `12 hours on Connor McGregor sexual assault, teen getting done for with no priors for possession of cannabis and twice on Jury duty....... what do the members of the jury say? I am guessing you wanted to study law but never got a chance or you had some interaction with a guard?

Very good, I’ve posted that I’d batter Conor McGregor and Katie Taylor together at the same time, added #RHLM red head lives matter in the cannabis teen thread, and laughed at someone for believing that drug dealers are walking around the city with suitcases stuffed with money looking to get someone killed.

Read the posts kid, it’s just random crap for the lolz. Accusing me of having interest in the law is laughable. And if I did give you a lecture some time ago then I’m now thinking you most likely deserved it.

begbysback wrote: »

Read the posts kid, it’s just random crap for the lolz. Accusing me of having interest in the law is laughable. And if I did give you a lecture some time ago then I’m now thinking you most likely deserved it.

So have you ever had an interaction with a guard?

tringle

skooterblue2 wrote: »

Once again, if you want to get out of it read between the lines. It is very possible if you are motivated. Only idiots and people with a deep interest in law serve on juries.

.

So if you are on trial you would be happy to be judged by a jury of idiots.

I dont have a deep interest in the law and can assure you I am no idiot and find your comment offensive.

IamMetaldave

Got called last year for the first time, went in sat about waiting... hoping I wasn't called.. my number came up to be in the reserve bunch as so many people talked their way out of it. Ended up being sent back to the room and no sooner had I sat down, my number was called again... Talk about bad luck... I had asked my boss before going in for a letter but he told me to go do my civic duty and the company (American corporation) would support their staff to do it. The case I was on what was supposed to be an 8 day trial that went on over 4 weeks. Got 5 year exemptment from being called at the end. To be fair it was pretty interesting seeing how it all works. There was a huge amount of time wasted and sitting in the jury room.

charlietheminxx

Good time to spot this thread, I've just been summoned for jury service for the first time ever! I'm in next month. I'm happy to attend as I like to do my bit and I'll admit I'm curious about the whole process.

Has anyone done it since the Covid restrictions were put in place? If you don't want to post your experiences here please DM me, I want to know what to expect!

I'm to show up at 9.15am - what time are you usually kept there until if you're selected? Most importantly - what's the lunch like?

skooterblue2 wrote: »

How many are real cases and how many are Damo reoffending for the 235th time in 5 years? Want to be a hero? Go be a scouts leader/soccer coach and prevent young Damo and Chantal from going down the drugs route.

Circuit court trials by jury are not very common. When they are, it's usually something reasonable serious. Yes it may be someone with 100 convictions but you won't know that.

I'm not playing anyone as a hero for doing it, I'm merely pointing out it is important and it is a civic duty.

I would absolutely agree that people volunteering their time in clubs is a noble activity

skooterblue2 wrote: »

So have you ever had an interaction with a guard?

Yes, I own a fairly powerful car and have my fair share of penalty points, plus a friend of mine joined up recently, does that count?

charlietheminxx wrote: »

Good time to spot this thread, I've just been summoned for jury service for the first time ever! I'm in next month. I'm happy to attend as I like to do my bit and I'll admit I'm curious about the whole process.

Has anyone done it since the Covid restrictions were put in place? If you don't want to post your experiences here please DM me, I want to know what to expect!

I'm to show up at 9.15am - what time are you usually kept there until if you're selected? Most importantly - what's the lunch like?

Lunch is really good, decent selection too.

JohnnyChimpo

begbysback wrote: »

Yes, I own a fairly powerful car and have my fair share of penalty points, plus a friend of mine joined up recently, does that count?

Are you the guy from the Dad's Best Friend video?

tringle wrote: »

.
So if you are on trial you would be happy to be judged by a jury of idiots.

I dont have a deep interest in the law and can assure you I am no idiot and find your comment offensive.

There is a large stretch of the imagination to get me on an offence.
Why would you want to on a jury when you could be building your own career or business? Nobody cares you were on a jury.

I am offended that you are offended at me offending you. If you are offended at every little microaggression, you should stay at home and much less stay away from the internet. I will be around with hot chocolate and hug to make you feel better. By any chance did you complain to the judge at the trial that you found the defendants actions offensive?

jaxxx

begbysback wrote: »

Lunch is really good, decent selection too.

Hold the phone, no one said anything about free food. SIGN ME UP!

0ph0rce0

Got called a while back.

Booked a flight on ryanair the day I got my letter, was one way to London for €6.99, sent it in and said I'd be away.

Had I of gone in it would have cost me €7.20 Dart fare anyway so worked out cheaper in the end.