Finally! Jury Duty Payment

Right in the middle of my cataract surgery in August/September, I was so lucky to get a jury summons. Given our history of DC jury duty, I was less than thrilled. Between my husband and I it seemed we were in the courthouse every year. When we moved to northern Virginia I was sent a generic jury duty questionnaire that I knew at the time I would most likely end up getting served. And so it goes. I had to postpone it to October and was even more lucky to get stuck on a criminal case that lasted the whole week. My husband made it all the more nicer by driving me in and staying all day. I would meet him for lunch and we would walk. He would read and observe his surroundings. On the last day he wasn’t able to make it, so I was on my own for the day of deliberations. In the end it seemed like a big waste of time because the defendant was found not guilty for domestic violence, assault and battery and rape because there was just not enough solid evidence. It was a very draining experience both physically and psychologically. After six weeks, the jury duty check finally arrived in the mail for two hundred dollars. It seems there must be a better way of doing things. Considering all the people that are put out by this experience the budget for all of this is astronomical when you consider all of the jury cases going on every day of the year across the country - only to have this kind of end result. I am just so happy that they can’t ask me to serve anymore due to age restrictions. Yes, it was an interesting experience, but I don’t want to have another one like it. 

Jury Duty Revisited

Last week I was on a criminal case jury for domestic violence, assault and battery, and rape. There were five counts that required deliberation. In the end a twice convicted felon was found not guilty because there was insufficient evidence. We knew he did it, but there was nothing we could grab on to beyond a reasonable doubt. I have been thinking about this case and process a lot since then. Though it was an interesting process, it really affected me in a negative way. Some of the people on the jury did not stop talking from the minute we sat together in the small locked jury room. They expressed opinions that should not have been expressed starting on the first day. I took copious notes and didn’t say anything about the victim or defendant until deliberations started on the last day. I raised several items that others had overlooked because they had already made up their minds. There were eight men and four women. Two alternates were women but they were released on the last day. I think having more men made a difference - and their perspective on the details - or lack of details - was disturbing. And for the first time my Apple Watch sent a signal that my resting heart rate rose above 120! And upon review my resting heart rate for the entire week on jury duty was ten points higher than an average week - from 60 to 70. Obviously I was dealing with more stress than usual, was having difficulty sleeping, and my routine was turned upside down. It was mentally and physically exhausting. Now I know why people over seventy are excused from jury duty in Virginia. I didn’t write down names of the victims, accused, lawyers, etc to google later. I didn’t want to think about it any more. The most disgusting thing is that this guy is back out on the street. What a waste of time. I still clearly remember the faces of all the jurors and remain disheartened by the whole thing. 

Criminal Case IPad Adventure Games

I stumbled upon them a few months ago. The Criminal Case iPad games are just plain fun. When I got my first tiny iPhone so many years ago I got hooked on these types of games. Back then, Big Fish was the app maker of choice. Once I had an iPad, it became an every evening entertainment venue for my husband and me. Big Fish games came with a price and have since disappeared - which is why I found criminal case. The Criminal case games are “free” - but they come with a lot of advertising. It’s tolerable - and now they offer the games for $7.99 without advertising. I have all five of them loaded on my iPad and we play each one until the points run out. The one thing that we have learned playing any of these games is that I am really good at anything visual - hidden objects, drawing, shapes,  putting things together. My husband is much better at anything analytical, mathematical, or intuitive. Another one of our favorite recent games was Murder in the Alps by Nordcurrent. But we have been waiting for the next chapters and they don’t seem to be coming any time soon. In the end it’s not so much the games. We sit on the couch together and have mindless fun. It was great before the hibernation period started two months ago and definitely is even better now.