First time jury duty in Queens -- kill me now! Yeah, it's our duty, blah, blah, blah, but no one likes sitting and waiting around for hours. Even worse when you're ALL actually called into the courtroom. I was used to jury duty where you all sit in the central room, where it's a lot more comfortable, and they call in small groups at a time. But there were so few of us that day that everyone was stuck going in.
Central jury room -- super close to the train, via the E or F line. You don't go through the main entrance, but around the corner. Big waiting room, with cushy, comfortable chairs, computer stations, and two tables to sit at, have TVs that play movies, but we didn't get to watch much of anything since we were all headed out shortly after announcements. Bathrooms were easy to get to, had multiple stalls, very clean, plenty of soap and paper towels.
Staff is helpful -- gave instructions on how to fill out certain paperwork, give them our jury duty summons, answered all our questions individually. Friendly enough too, made some jokes, smiles....although I could have sworn one guy at the front desk almost had a smug, mocking smile on his face, as if to say "Haha, you're stuck here doing jury duty!" OK, maybe that was all in my imagination....or was it?
An officer gave us general instructions, but led us out the central jury room to the criminal court further down on Queens Blvd. Security in both buildings were quick and easy -- keys and cellphone or other electronics or metal in a small bin. Bags go through the machine. If you have a laptop, must take it out, etc. Sometimes they scan you with the wand, but not always.
Felt like we did a lot of traveling and waiting around as a group : first we went to the third floor, and waited around, used the bathrooms. Took about 3-4 elevator trips. Then it was time to go to the fourth floor to courtroom K-10, and again it was several tips on the elevator. Wait some more, then file into the room, take our seats, and pray our names aren't called. There were introductions of the lawyer, description of the defendant/case, and then the Judge would explain things like reasonable doubt, innocent until guilty, etc.
They called the first 16 people, and then the judge would ask more questions, regarding language, any issues being biased, religious conflicts, scheduling conflicts. So many people had excuses, and after awhile they all sounded the same. At some point, i swear people were faking their ability to understand English, because one older Chinese man was able to answer all questions and articulate himself well, but just had an accent! And he got dismissed. Two girls had the exact same story -- coincidentally, I saw them talking with one another during the lunch break -- both their fathers and brothers were cops. Then there were people who were religious and didn't feel comfortable making judgments. Suuuuree....we all make judgments on people every day....but when it comes to sitting in jury duty, nope, suddenly they can't. Blah blah.
1.5 hours of the same line of questioning each time someone new was put in the seat. Lunch break a little early (12:30-2:15). Another 3 hours of the same questioning, then individual questioning, then the lawyer and prosecutor talking to the jurors. Honestly, even the judge was getting antsy, looking at the clock. The other workers in the room were slouching in their chair, their eyes closed. The whole day dragged. It was 5:30 by the time we were finally able to leave.
There was a blond female officer who seemed a little unprofessional. During the questioning, she kept talking, whispering, and giggling with a fellow male officer. Obviously they knew each other, but it wasn't a time to be social. And yeah, it kind of pissed me off that every juror was sitting on uncomfortable, hard benches that made our backs ache, but she was having a grand old time with her "buddy".
Overall, everyone was friendly. The judge would crack some jokes here and there. He seemed fair. Didn't talk with an attitude. Came up to us at the end, dismissed us. The cop/guard who collected our jury duty tickets said we would get a certificate in the mail, and was nice, joking around that we didn't need to come back Friday, but if we did or wanted to, we wouldn't get paid for it.
Jury duty is everyone's least favorite thing to do, but it was a learning experience. Next time it happens,I know what to expect. read more