Dean Blundell producer in hot water for discussing jury duty

[HaywoodJabloemy]

... if as a juror you ignore such a basic instruction from the judge as not to discuss the case outside court, how on earth can anyone be sure that you are paying the slightest attention to any of the other jury instructions?

That's the problem. Juries are made up of people who are too dumb to get out of it.

Do you mean just not showing up, or purposefully saying something dumb in the court room during the selection process?
Not working at the time, I had no excuse for not showing up, and assumed I would likely just spend most of the week in the big waiting room watching TV shows I'd recorded onto my iPod Touch. But not wanting to make myself look dumb, I did end up on a jury for three days.
It can be kind of interesting for some people doing it for the first time. But from my own limited experience and hearing anyone else talk about it, almost every jury will have two or three people who just don't listen and can't understand, despite very clear and often repeated instructions from the judge that should make things relatively simple in most cases.

 

[blackrock13]

That's the problem. Juries are made up of people who are too dumb to get out of it.

So I guess you'd prefer the type of judicial system they have in Russia where fewer than 6 in 10,000 court cases have juries? I'm so glad you think jury duty is menial and unimportant.

 

[TeasePlease]

So I guess you'd prefer the type of judicial system they have in Russia where fewer than 6 in 10,000 court cases have juries? I'm so glad you think jury duty is menial and unimportant.

Where did I say that? Are you attributing my observation about the jury selection process to my attitude towards jury duty?

From a professional perspective, I would love to sit on a jury. I am certain that it is very unlikely to happen.

 

[blackrock13]

Where did I say that? Are you attributing my observation about the jury selection process to my attitude towards jury duty?

From a professional perspective, I would love to sit on a jury. I am certain that it is very unlikely to happen.

On one hand you say that juries are full of dumb people who can't get out of jury duty, indicating that juries are full of dumb people, and yet now you say you think you're smart and would love to serve. There are only a few occupations that are frowned upon as jurors, oddly enough lawyers and police officers and those with a criminal recent record. Are you saying you have a criminal record?

 

[TeasePlease]

On one hand you say that juries are full of dumb people who can't get out of jury duty, indicating that juries are full of dumb people, and yet now you say you think you're smart and would love to serve. There are only a few occupations that are frowned upon as jurors, oddly enough lawyers and police officers and those with a criminal recent record. Are you saying you have a criminal record?

1. No criminal record, not a lawyer or a cop.

2. I never said that I was smart.

 

[blackrock13]

The following persons are ineligible to serve as jurors:
1. Every member of the Privy Council of Canada or the Executive Council of Ontario.
2. Every member of the Senate, the House of Commons of Canada or the Assembly.
3. Every judge and every justice of the peace.
4. Every barrister and solicitor and every student-at-law.
5. Every legally qualified medical practitioner and veterinary surgeon who is actively engaged in practice and every coroner.
6. Every person engaged in the enforcement of law including, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, sheriffs, wardens of any penitentiary, superintendents, jailers or keepers of prisons, correctional institutions or lockups, sheriff’s officers, police officers, firefighters who are regularly employed by a fire department for the purposes of subsection 41 (1) of the Fire Protection and Prevention Act, 1997, and officers of a court of justice.

The practising doctor and coroner is a surprise. The various officers of the court is also a surprise. Although I could understand a doctor not sitting on a jury involving a doctor, hospital or such and a court officer not sitting on a jury involving the same.

 

[blackrock13]

1. No criminal record, not a lawyer or a cop.

2. I never said that I was smart.

Fair enough.

 

[blackrock13]

I cannot give you the exact statistic at the moment, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was close to that number in Canada. We have very few jury trials as a percentage of all cases.

All summary criminal matters are judge alone.

Many indictable cases go as judge alone, at the request of the accused.

The vast majority of civil cases are judge alone.

Another way that the Canadian legal system is quite different from the American.

I believe the Russian numbers also don't include civil cases.

 

[TeasePlease]

I want a jury made up entirely of affluent white guys for my fraud/embezzlement trial. They would totally feel me.

 

[acutus]

and continually quoting yourself is a sure sign of narcissism.

One could simply note the context of my posts that concern you. Sincerely, Jon .

 

[acutus]

This is why when picking a jury you have to be very careful about teachers and nurses.

They will sway the jury and if there is a hint they are not in your favour you use up one of your challenges to eject them.

One would hope that no one accuses you of being 'bigoted'... lol... Just kidding. lol... Sincerely, Jon .

 

[afterhours]

This is why when picking a jury you have to be very careful about teachers and nurses.

They will sway the jury and if there is a hint they are not in your favour you use up one of your challenges to eject them.

Some authors suggest that nurses can be expected to be sympathetic to the accused. The reality I think is that jurors will almost always be much more "law and order" than any accused (except maybe a cop charged with assaulting a suspect) would like them to be.

PS - If jurors were able to understand the wisdom of "pick a judge if you are innocent, pick a jury if you are guilty" then I guess a reasonable response from them would be to convict everyone.