I recently gave the keynote for Jury Appreciation Day for the 1st Judicial District of Pennsylvania. Thank you to Judge Jacqueline Allen, Judge Barbara McDermott, Judge Stella Tsai, and Gabriel Roberts for inviting me and coordinating. It was an honor. Gabriel, the Director of Communications for the 1st Judicial District, asked if I would share my remarks and I am honored to do that as well. Please see below..
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Good Morning.. I am so happy to see all of you here today… and I understand if that feeling is not mutual..
I know many of you are thinking about the other places you’d rather be and the other things you’d rather be doing.. or the other places you NEED to be and the other things you NEED to be doing..
I get it.. We all have this in common: When we see that jury summons.. Our knee-jerk reaction is to moan and groan.. roll our eyes... Think “I just did that!” or wonder, “How can I get out of this? or “What crazy thing can I say that will get me dismissed?”
And we have reason for that reaction.. It’s a pain to get here.. To park here.. And it can be painful to BE here - especially if you have young kids.. or work the night shift.. or own a small business or if you freelance or get paid by the hour.. or have a difficult boss who’s going to require you to make up all the work you missed by putting in longer hours.
But ALL that having been said.. I also believe we are lucky to be here today.. And I’d like to take a few minutes to explain why.
I’d like to invite you to shift your lens through which you see jury duty. Instead of seeing it as an obligation.. I invite you to see it as an opportunity.. Instead of seeing it as a responsibility, I invite you to see it as your right. In fact, I even invite you to see the JOY in jury service.
I invite you to take a moment and listen in hopes of finding the meaning and importance of jury service - IF for some reason determining someone’s guilt or innocence.. and determining their future isn’t important enough.
So first off - know that if you get chosen… you are in a very exclusive club. Every year, less than 1% of the U.S. adult population serves on a jury.. So folks, if you get picked..you can say you are part of the 1-percent..
And on a much more serious note… You have the opportunity to actively participate in and advance Equality and Democracy…
Consider that there was a time when minorities, including black people, Asian people, and Native Americans, were not allowed to serve on juries in the United States.. Women were not allowed to serve on a jury in Pennsylvania until 1920… It wasn’t until 1968 that women were allowed to serve on juries in all 50 states… And while it’s been illegal to exclude African Americans from jury duty for more than 135 years, black people and ALL racial and ethnic minorities are still under-represented in courts across the country today. For a variety of reasons, juries often do not accurately reflect our population.
And there is a dangerous consequence of NOT being tried in front of a jury of your peers.. A study led by Duke University showed all-white jury pools convicted black defendants 16-percent more often than white defendants.. But that gap was nearly eliminated when at least ONE member of the jury pool was black.
The composition of the jury pool has an enormous impact on trial outcomes.. We NEED diversity on our juries.. diversity in the most diverse sense of that word if we want to ensure that our court system works as it should for ALL of us.. We need panels of people who understand a diverse array of experiences and languages and ways of thinking...
So who YOU are… your race, religion, sexual orientation, social-economic background.. everything that makes up who you are.. Is CRITICAL to making sure the wheels of justice turn smoothly and fairly.. This is your opportunity to guard our democracy and advance our very freedoms in this country.
A woman who recently served on a jury compared the civic duty of voting to the civc duty of jury service.. She says, “I’ll vote in November, and it will be important. But I don’t think I’ll ever feel as significant as a citizen as I did in that jury room...
We are told that there is a great divide in our country, and at the voting booth that is apparent. But in the jury room, we were just 12 random people pulled out of our daily lives and asked to administer the final decision in a case. It felt like our justice system at work.” [[Paula Carter served on a jury in Cook County, Illinois]]
Judge Michael Landrum of the 113th District Court in Texas said this: “Our judicial system is critical to maintaining our liberty. It is impossible to over emphasize the importance of jury trials. Imagine what it would be like if court cases were decided only by bureaucrats or those with undisclosed biases, prejudices, or personal interests…. The right to a trial by a jury is the only constitutional right mentioned both in the body of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. That is a right guaranteed to each of us. ”
And if that isn’t enough to convince you to participate in jury service in a wholehearted way.. Consider this.. This is an opportunity on a purely selfish level.. You have the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life.. To move in and have a real conversation with a diverse group of people whom you might never have the chance to meet and talk to otherwise.
You also have the opportunity to learn new skills… how to approach people and debate and discuss issues and collaborate such that you win others over to your point of view.. Folks - people pay big money for that kind of education!
You will also come away with a unique experience and knowledge about our justice system and depending on the case, a wide variety of topics that are unfamiliar to you.
Studies have shown jurors come away from the experience feeling satisfied.. They use words like enlightening and empowering.. They say they walk away with a sense of fulfillment and purpose by taking part in democracy in action.
Our jury system is the foundation of our system of justice. You would want a fair jury to decide your case, right?
And for those of you who feel disenfranchised.. who are disheartened by what you see happening in government. This is your chance to take action. If you think our legal system is broken, this is your opportunity to fix it.
It is our right to serve on juries.. It is a right that we are entitled to as American citizens.. and it allows us to prevent corruption in our courtrooms and provide access to justice for all.. But that right and that access cannot exist if we are not willing to serve.
So once again thanks to each and every one of you for being here and for collectively safeguarding our freedoms by serving our country and Commonwealth.
Jury Appreciation Day was made even more special because I got to bring our son! He acted as a helper when they did the raffle to give gift cards to jurors as a token of appreciation :)