The Annoyed Man wrote: The only time I've been through voir dire (back in California, many years before obtaining my CHL), I made it all the way through until the judge — a good friend of mine — asked the jury panel if any of us were personally acquainted with or related to anyone else in the courtroom, including the accused, either attorney, the clerk, the bailiff, or anyone else. I raised my hand. My friend, a superior court judge, said "Yes, Mr. Annoyed Man. I suppose you think that I should probably disclose to everyone here that you and I know each other from church, are members of the same Sunday School class, eat dinner together occasionally, and go camping together every year? Do either defense counsel or The People have any objection to this? Please approach the bench to consult." Neither attorney had any objection, and I made the jury.
I grew up in a small county, registered to vote as soon as I hit 18, and bingo, was on a jury in no time, along with several neighbors and acquaintances. It was a civil trial venued from a big city. When the out of town lawyers asked if anyone in the pool knew anyone else, they were shocked to have 90% of the pool raise their hands. The judge (who knew most of us as well, and was a friend of my family) laughed and told them if they tried to get a jury of strangers, we'd be voir-diring for weeks. The lawyers conferred quickly and decided to press on with us. When selection was done, I knew at least eight of my fellow jurors. Didn't prevent a hung jury tho.
KD5NRH wrote:
Isn't there some process for jury selection questions that aren't appropriate to answer in front of everybody? I can think of several things that an attorney would effectively alienate potential jurors by forcing them to answer in the presence of the entire jury pool, but which could be very relevant to a case.
Yes -- I have been in several jury pools (and a couple trials), and the judge will hear individuals in private if need be. In Bexar County, there is a big cattle call pool, which is subsequently divided up into smaller pools that are sent to individual courts. While still at the cattle call, a judge will give us a briefing and then announce that anyone who thinks he or she needs to speak to the judge in private about their ability to serve on a jury can meet the judge individually. There was always a long line at the side of the room for this. Even in the individual courts, a juror could ask to speak to the judge privately.