This Week in the Mercury
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
News Asking Jurors: What Is Your Major News Source?
Posted by Matt Davis on Wed, Sep 24, 2008 at 1:25 PM
I was down at the courthouse just before noon, and saw a notice next to the jury bench in the courtroom: "Jurors," it read. "Be prepared to answer these questions..."
Along with name, occupation, education, hobbies, area of residence, who resides with you, whether you've ever had a crime committed against you, whether you have any connections to law enforcement, whether you've previously been a juror, there was a question that stuck out.
"What is your major news source, i.e CNN, newspaper, talk shows."
These questions are asked of the jurors by attorneys for both sides during "voir dire," before a trial begins, in order to root out prejudiced jurors. But it occurred to me that if someone answered "The Portland Mercury," they'd almost certainly be asked to leave the courtroom by a District Attorney.
Recent coverage of court proceedings in the pages of this newspaper have included: a cop accused of perjuring herself on the stand, the subpoena of a city commissioner to testify about a program allegedly targeting certain offenders for special treatment (that trial has been set over again by the District Attorney's office this week, until late October...), a judge fining a cop for parking illegally, not to mention the story of a cop avoiding scrutiny after shooting an unarmed criminal.
Remember: What you read defines you in the eyes of the courts. Thanks for reading the Mercury. Just be sure to tell the world, especially if you don't fancy doing jury duty.
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Asking jurors: "what kind of toilet paper do you use?"
same answer, same dismissal.
You are wrong, Matt:
I gave that very answer during a voir dire a scant single month ago, and ended up being selected for a 4-day trial, much to my dismay.
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