The Near Disaster of Jury Duty

Yes, folks... I was called in for Jury Duty at the early hour of 8am on Monday morning, to be immediately called to a courtroom for what would be an intense *2 days* of deliberations over which jury members to keep.  I got plopped in the jury box with the first random call, only to find out that the case was an appeal on a VERY high-profile murder trial from 1992.  The problem?  I knew not only the twin sister of the deceased (I had met her shortly after the murder), but also know the sister of the man on trial.

Wow.  At the end of Tuesday, I was dismissed to re-join the general pool of jurors, since this week is apparently a *very* busy week at the County Courthouse.

I had *almost* wished to remain on the panel, if for no other reason than experience in my upcoming career as a Crime Scene Investigator... but how in the world can you be completely unbiased considering personal knowledge of both families involved???

Not only that, but MANY people that I know today were VERY close to either the sisters or the accused.  I know that I will be following this case closely over the estimated three weeks that it is scheduled to take before a verdict has been reached.

I am home from duty all day today, but still have to phone in this evening to find out if I need to report tomorrow... and do the same for Friday, as well.  I'm hoping for either a relief from all duties for the rest of the week, or at least to be utilized for another interesting case.  God only knows what may lie in store behind a different set of courtroom doors...

I DO wish the friends, family, and acquaintances of BOTH parties peace throughout the next few weeks and beyond... I cannot even imagine what any of them may be going through...

XOXO