Jury Duty

Today I spent the day in Cambridge, doing my civic obligation of making myself available for jury duty. In our state, you serve for "one day or one trial". This means that you go to a courthouse and spend the day, waiting to be impanelled on a jury. If you are not needed, then you have fulfilled your civic duty, and you will not be called again for three years. If you are impanelled on a jury, you must complete the trial, for however long it takes. Jury duty is really quite a system for making sure our judicial system is fair and equitable. All of us where there ready to serve, to give up our regular lives in order that others can have the right to a fair trial. 153 jurors showed up today, 55 were taken up to a courtroom where 12 of them were impanelled on a jury and the rest returned to the "pool". My juror number was not called, so I spent the day reading, walking around the juror floor for a little exercise, and people watching. I was amazed at what people considered "proper attire" as requested in the juror's handbook: it ranged from business suits to gym clothes, with business casual and blue jeans falling somewhere in between. Jurors ranged from young college students to elderly retired people. Some people played by the rules (me, of course!) while others did not. Apparently the signs and instructions that said "no cell phones" and "no eating in this room" were only meant for some of us.

When you are called for jury duty, the state tells you which day to show up and which courthouse to go to. Although there are two courthouses within ten miles of my home, I got called to the Cambridge Courthouse, 30 miles away. This necessitated a trip into the city by train, then taking the subway to the closest "T" stop, and then walking the rest of the way. Hubby works in Boston quite frequently so he planned to make today a Boston day and accompany me to the courthouse to alleviate my worries about getting there. Once I was dismissed from the courthouse however, it was up to me to take the subway, changing trains, and make my way to his office on the opposite side of the city. This was out of my comfort zone for sure, but I did just fine. I am quite happy that I wasn't seated on a trial because doing this everyday would have been quite stressful for me especially without Hubby. I'm not sure how all those people do this commute each day for their jobs. I guess I'm just not a city-person....I prefer my quiet little town. I know how to get everywhere, know I might meet others I know around town, and feel a sense of comfort in the suburbs. I realized today that I'm really just a small-town girl. But I'm glad I did my duty and offered to serve on a jury. Today has been an eye-opener for me.