Gross, completely unsurprising peek at how prosecutors deliberately weed thoughtful and conscientious people off of juries because they are harder to manipulate.
Something to remember next time you go for jury duty.
Something to remember next time you go for jury duty.
To those of you who are thoughtful and concerned and asking whether you will ever be able to make it on to a jury, yes. You will. Short story to follow.
These slides make it clear that prosecutors are actively trying to weed out people who might listen too carefully to be swayed by shabby evidence and the false testimony of police.
But the same sloppiness that makes prosecutors choose tactics like this instead of actually doing the work of building a strong case makes them astonishingly bad at jury selection.
Great example: A few days ago I tweeted about a case where I had an officer claim my client punched her, in spite of video showing the contrary. So the charge against my client was assault on an officer.
We were asking the jury questions to find out who might be able to judge the case fairly, and we had a young man on the jury whose father was a police officer. Boom, prosecutor loved him. Stopped listening.
But not everyone loves their dad.
I asked him what it was like, being raised by a cop. He paused.
He said it was complicated.
I asked him what it was like, being raised by a cop. He paused.
He said it was complicated.
And that's when I realized that he would listen carefully. That he understands the complexity of human relationships and he understands the capacity of police officers to be problematic.
All of which is to say, the prosecutor didn't catch...any of this. Let him on.
And yes...he voted not guilty.
So if you are out there wondering if you can get on a jury? Yes you can. Show up for jury duty. Don't try to get out of it.
And yes...he voted not guilty.
So if you are out there wondering if you can get on a jury? Yes you can. Show up for jury duty. Don't try to get out of it.
Because here's the thing about juries. When prosecutors realize that the jury pool in their jurisdiction is skeptical and thoughtful and difficult to manipulate, suddenly it changes the way they behave.
Look at the Bronx. People in the Bronx live in an over policed world. They don't trust cops and they don't like cops and they don't listen to people simply because those people are in a position of authority. The Bronx has great juries.
I've practiced law in several places, and when I think about my Bronx experience as compared to, say, my California experience, it's astonishing how much more leverage one has in the Bronx to force something...slightly closer to Justice.
The people of a jurisdiction make up the jury pool that sets the tone for the entire system. Educate yourself. Educate your friends. Show up for jury duty. Get on a jury. Change the whole fucking thing.
We need to dismantle the system and we can start from *all* angles.
We need to dismantle the system and we can start from *all* angles.
