I've served twice in the last 10 years. The first time was a DUI on an evening where we had 21 inches of snow (a record for us) and on the surface you would of concluded he was guilty, but after hearing the case against him and understanding the letter of the law and what "beyond a reasonable doubt was, he was found innocent.
My second time was a murder trial that involved gangs and bunch of kids at a party. It is amazing to really understand what goes on in our society. 10 bottles of hard liquor was stolen by a 15 yo and was consumed at the party that evening. Each day there were 5-7 deputies watching over things and then the evening we came to the verdict, there were over twenty officers guarding us and escorting us out of the court house via a back entrance. That was a bit unnerving and I made sure each night I wasn't followed. There was no doubt of his guilt but we had to determine whether it was first or second degree murder and after 4 hours we found him guilty of first degree. It was hard having 15 - 20 year olds testifying and changing their stories. In the end it was a sad state of affairs, but again you are presented with the law and you are to follow the law.
So that's my story.
Outstanding post, bossone. As a guy who makes my living largely by defending people accused of crimes, I have to tell you that your post defines the quality and true essence of what a juror should be. I wish I could always get juries with folks like you who are willing to actually do the job the right way and are not afraid to vote the facts, not the hype that so often is injected into the criminal process by special interests and the media. It sounds like you did exactly the right thing in both cases. Good for you.
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