I arrived at the courthouse early again because of the parking shortage and clearly I wasn't the only one with this idea because I didn't get as great a spot as I had hoped. Don't get me wrong, it was a good spot, but not the row I was hoping for.
My attitude was kind of bad too on this day. I was exhausted--I'll blog about why on Thursday--and I was tired of sitting in that room. Plus, I'd been there until 6pm the previous day and I was less than thrilled to be back. Did I mention in an earlier blog about this ordeal that everyone else I know who's been called for jury duty was released after one day? Not me.
As I went through security, I recognized some of the deputies--that means I was definitely there for too long. I joked with them about why no one likes jury duty then reported in at the desk. "I'm here for day three of the hostage situation," I said. The two ladies laughed, but I wasn't really joking.
There was more talking today. A group of jurors started a card game. Everyone came prepared to keep themselves occupied for a long time. I brought my notebooks along again, too, but I wasn't in the mood to do any work. I did some talking. I played some games on my iPad. I checked in on social media. I decided that I'd be like the world's worst hostage because I was just pissy at this point and wanted out. Hell, I'd even go through another round of dire voir rather than sit in that room for hours on end again.
We were left to our own devices until 11am when a judge came in. All the cases had been disposed of--except for one. They needed us to stick around for that, but they wouldn't be ready to question potential jurors until 2pm so we could have a long lunch, just be back before two.
I checked the time, did some figuring on how long it would take to drive home and then back again, factored in the parking situation and decided to stay put. I'd brought my lunch in a cooler, so I went out to my car and had a sandwich. There was still a lot of time to kill before 2pm so I talked to one of my writing buddies until about 1:30 and then I went back inside. I know I mentioned that electrical sockets were at a premium and my phone battery was getting low.
So I sat there for half an hour and then it was 2pm. No activity. 2:15, 2:30, 2:45--nothing. Finally, at 3pm, the judge returns. The case was disposed of and there were no more trials they needed us for. We were released!
Part of me rejoiced. Part of me was crabby as hell that the defense and prosecutor didn't reach a plea agreement at 11am. I could have been home for hours! Grrr.
I picked up my letter for my employer to verify that I'd been trapped in a room with many other people for three unbearably long days and then I escaped. I swear I've never been so happy to go back to my day job in my entire life!
Jury duty was hideous, but oddly enough one woman wanted to volunteer to be involved with more trials. Go figure.
