A few months ago, I received my first summons for jury duty. I felt a mix of emotions when I opened the letter.
I was both excited and annoyed that I would possibly have to perform my civic duty. It’s also worth noting that the summons was for federal court, meaning I would’ve had to go to the courthouse in downtown St. Louis for jury selection.
While my initial reaction was to try to get out of it, I did experience a moment of hesitation, should I just try it? Everyone must do it at some point, right? In theory, it would be pretty cool to be a part of the carriage of justice.
I could have been on a really high-profile case and written a novel based on my experiences. Years of reading John Grisham books and watching procedural TV shows would have prepared me for this very moment.
When I mentioned I was being called for jury duty to my colleagues at the Leader, I got lot of advice on how I could be excused from serving.
While I appreciated their ideas, my mind immediately went to an episode of “30 Rock” where Tina Fey’s character, Liz Lemon, dresses up as Princess Leia and says, “I don’t really think it’s fair for me to be on a jury because I can read thoughts” and gets dismissed. I wondered how hard Han Solo or Luke Skywalker costumes could be to find.
However, because I want to leave my dignity intact and not dress up like a “Star Wars” character in a court of law and because I am not a Rockefeller, I submitted a request to be excused from jury duty. My request was ultimately approved, with a reminder that I will receive another summons in the future.
A 2017 Pew Research Center survey found that two-thirds of U.S. adults said that serving on a jury is part of being a good citizen. Fifty percent of 18- to 29-year-olds shared that sentiment, compared to 78 percent of those 65 and older. Is that a result of older people having more opportunities to serve on juries? Or are today’s young adults increasingly disinterested in their civic duties?
Jury duty holds a lot of significance for my family.
My parents met while serving on the same jury in 1997. During lunch on the first day of jury selection, my mom was eating a fat-free pretzel. She said my dad came up to her and told her, “You might want to read this before eating that,” and then showed her an article in The Wall Street Journal about how fat-free pretzels weren’t really that good for you. They immediately hit it off.
The case my parents were serving on was supposed to go to trial, but the defendant pleaded guilty before the trial could begin, and everyone was sent home. My mom said she gave her number to my dad that day, and they had their first date at a Blues game the following week.
An article by Mita Malick in Time magazine published last year posed the question, is annoyance the price we pay for community?
That article and my recent brush with the judicial system left me with a lot of questions; why do we want to immediately want out of things like jury duty when we’re asked to? Should we trust our initial reaction, or should we try to understand why we don’t want to experience any inconvenience? What if my parents skipped or had been excused from jury duty? I certainly wouldn’t be here writing this column today.
In today’s age of artificial intelligence, same day delivery and instant gratification, it seems we’re skipping through life experiences more than ever before. We can purchase food without ever setting foot in a restaurant. We can go shopping online without needing to scour the shelves. We can go on dates without ever having to approach someone we find attractive in public.
I will be the first to admit I’m not the most patient person in the world. However, there is something to be said for shared experiences like going to a store or waiting in line. Not to mention, it’s less expensive when you factor in shipping and delivery fees.
For a few minutes or maybe hours, you and the other people in the room share a common bond you wouldn’t get anywhere else. I have seen the best and worst of humanity while waiting in line at the DMV.
There have also been plenty of times I’ve been asked for a favor by a family member, friend or colleague and felt a pang of irritation. Most of the time, I go through it anyway, because I know I would want them to do the same for me.
Even outside of mundane everyday life, we pay the price of community.
The New York Knicks recently won their first NBA Championship in 53 years, and every time I open my social media feeds, I’m blown away by the amount of unity New Yorkers are experiencing just waiting for the subway. If every facet out our lives becomes more streamlined and technically efficient, what will happen the next time the Knicks win the championship? Or any other major sports team?
Annoyance is a human emotion that we experience every day. Get rid of that and what’s left? We can’t be happy go lucky every second of our lives, it’s just not natural.
The next time I am called for jury duty, I might just let the justice system run its course and deal with the mild agitation. Who knows? I could meet the love of my life while I’m there.