Jury Duty

Just finished jury duty, which in my case consisted of two days plus an hour or so of voir dire—quite long by L.A. standards, I'm told, even for a felony trial—followed by being the very first person struck on a peremptory challenge by the defense.

It was in some ways interesting: We rarely get to be in the same room as something like a cross-section of our city (minus noncitizens, felons, and some other categories), hearing about their professions, their experiences (as victims and as the accused) with the justice system, and the like. I also got the sense that the other prospective jurors were taking the process seriously, and trying to answer questions candidly and reflectively. Still, it's a reminder that resources that are undervalued are overconsumed, and few resources are as undervalued as prospective juror time.