The jury waiting room did not have adequate space to spread out my iPad or books to pass the time. I would soon learn why. All 93 of us were directed to take the elevators to the 4th floor. I was hoping they would have more room to spread out. Then again, since Judy and I were having such fun chatting and getting to know each other, I realized I didn't have to bring my two hardback books or my Kindle or my iPad. Ah well...
We were marched into the large courtroom and introduced to Judge Kobayashi. I must tell you right now that we were all impressed at how knowledgeable, professional, friendly, kind, sympathetic, fair, strict and really downright nice she was. She told us that the 12 jurors and 2 alternates who were selected would serve until Friday.
I was surprised to learn that 10 of the 93 possible jurors had flown in from the Big Island, Kauai and Maui. Judge Kobayashi explained that it was because this was a federal court and not a state court. She smiled and said state courts paid $30 a day, while federal courts paid $50. Wow! I forgot that I could be paid (and more than in Chicago. no less).
People were then given the opportunity to explain why they could not serve. I was surprised that Judge Kobayashi did not excuse people who had difficulty with the English language.
* One fellow was from Mexico but had been in the U.S. for many years. He worked as a laborer and could not read English. He was not excused since the judge said there were no documents to read.
* Then there was a Chinese butcher who'd been in Hawaii for 40 years but couldn't speak English well. Not excused.
* Five teachers then went up and Judge Kobayashi asked each teacher where and what they taught. They were all excused and told they could serve in the summer.
* A school administrator was not excused.
* A cafeteria worker said it would be hard to find a substitute for her. The judge smiled and said she's sorry that the food might not be as delicious but, she would not be excused.
* One woman tearfully recounted something that occurred to her which could impact her judgement. She was excused.
And so it went.
Next came the selection. We were told that 32 possible jurors had been selected out of the 93 people left in attendance (by computer).
My new friend, Judy was the 11th of 32 possible juror names to be called. John who I'd met earlier was also one of the first 12 jurors. I was not selected. I don't win lotteries either.
Judge Kobayashi explained that everyone else needed to stay and listen carefully to the requirements for jury selection.
Jurors would not be allowed to speak to family members or anyone else about the case while the trial was going on for fear of being influenced. Decisions had to be made based on evidence presented. Jurors were also admonished not to look up things on the Internet or any other source.
Prosecutors had to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt! The prosecutors reminded me of Amy and Penny on the Big Bang Theory. The defendant's lawyer was a no nonsense, capable lawyer working hard.
After that came a couple of hours of questioning the 32 people selected:
Do you have a connection to Motorola, or used a Motorola phone?
Do you use an iPhone? (About 70% of the people raised their hands.)
Do you use a Samsung? (About 6 hands went up.)
Have you had experience retrieving data from cellphones?
Do you have a family member who works for the Honolulu Police Department? (Heeeey! That's me. My brother does! But I kept quiet since I wasn't one of the 32.)
Anytime, someone raised their hands, they were asked if they felt they could still be impartial. Only one person finally said he thought he could be impartial but having listened to some of the information, decided he could not. Judge Kobayashi listened kindly and excused him while wishing him well and thanking him for his honesty. Someone else from the remaining 61 people took his place.
It was getting quite late. I heard stomach growling from the fellow next to me and he smiled sheepishly at me. I told him, my tummy wasn't happy either.
We left at 12:30 for lunch and returned at 1:20. Judy and I couldn't find a place to buy a small lunch so we ended up eating our snack bars instead. We were told later that there was a cafeteria in the building. Sheesh!
At 1:20, the names of the 12 jurors and 2 alternates were revealed. Both Judy and John were selected.
The rest of us were told we could go home.
And the irony in all this... I don't think I would have minded being chosen.
POSTSCRIPT 1: Since everybody warned me about how cold it was going to be, I wore long jeans and packed a warm sweater jacket. It turned out the Federal building was not cold at all. It was quite comfortable and nobody wore sweaters or jackets. I guess it's the state court that's super cold.
POSTSCRIPT 2: Tomorrow--The Verdict
