Jury Duty From Start to Finish

Yeah…jury duty has come and gone…in the blink of an eye. One might consider me a professional juror. I have been called for jury duty numerous times and have actually served as a juror on 5 criminal trials and 1 civil case (thanks to being a public employee who was paid for all days of service). In the county I reside, jury duty now consists of one day or one trial. If you are not selected for a jury panel and are in the jury assembly room at the end of your first day, you have served your jury duty and are exempt for 12 months. Needless to say, I was dismayed last night when I phoned the juror call-in hotline and was informed by the recording that I was to report for jury service today. My mom has a doctor’s appointment scheduled for this Friday that I must drive her to and, of course, we have our all important hair appointments next Thursday so the thought of being selected for a jury was frightening. However, the experience turned out to be amazingly swift and painless. I reported as instructed at 9:30am and, after thankfully being overlooked for one panel which was sent to a courtroom, the jury clerk at 11:40am informed those of us in the assembly room that the other pending trials today had been settled prior to jury selection and we were now free to go having served our required one day. The cheer that erupted in the room was deafening. So now I can drive my mom to the doctor’s on Friday, have my hair done next Thursday and continue to finish up any last-minute holiday shopping free from jury obligations. How lucky am I!!!