What are your thoughts about being called for jury duty?
Welcome to our ExFeds News Wrap. Grab a cup of coffee, tea, or good ole’ water and join us for a conversation about crime and justice issues we’ve dealt with in our careers—before we started writing High Velocity Suspense. As a special treat, we will visit the land of NCIS when we have news about the popular TV show. David, like Jethro Gibbs, served as a Special Agent with NIS, the predecessor of NCIS, and as we travel the country for book signings, we meet so many readers who instantly identify with Abbey, Gibbs, Tony, McGee and Ducky. Everyone asks David, “Is NCIS for real? Is it accurate?”
Our recurring blog is the place to find out the answers! The ninth season premiers on September 20, 2011 and we’ll have a few sneak peeks for you before then, so gather round our News Wrap.
For this debut blog, here is what we’d like to know: Have you ever been called for jury duty? If so, was your experience a positive one?
Here’s why we’re asking. David testified in many trials and Diane has tried many cases before juries, but you know what? As much as both of us would be honored to serve on a jury, neither of us has ever been summoned by the Clerk of the Court. It must be the result of living in an “undisclosed location.” The clerk doesn’t know how to find us.
Right about now you’re thinking, with both of your legal backgrounds, you’d be kicked off by one of the lawyers. True. Even if we were ever summoned, we probably would be excluded from a jury due to Diane being an attorney and former Federal Prosecutor and David being a thirty-one-year veteran law enforcement officer. I guess we’d like the chance.
Lately, many folks have shared how they would do anything to avoid having to serve, especially if they have to be sequestered, i.e., forced to stay away from home. Judges hear every kind of excuse, but many won’t work. But most of us would agree that when accused of a wrongdoing, we would value the right to a trial by a jury of our peers. We believe it is a bedrock foundation of our democracy. If responsible law abiding citizens avoid jury duty, we will end up with juries that do not reflect a cross section of society. Recently, many Americans were shocked when the Florida jury found the Florida mother guilty of giving false reports to the police, but not guilty for the death of her two-year-old daughter. And a jury found O.J. Simpson not guilty in the death of his former wife despite overwhelming evidence.
We think of it this way. When we take seriously our civic duties and serve on juries, thoughtful, responsible, and well-informed citizens keep our society from slipping into anarchy. Some of you may be asked to serve on a “Grand Jury.” Grand Juries do not consider the guilt of culpability of person, but instead they are a tool to assist prosecutors in gathering and evaluating evidence, and ultimately, Grand Jurors vote to indict persons, so they will face trial. To find out more about what this is, read our thriller, “Facing Justice” where one of the characters serves on a federal grand jury, learning a key fact that fuels the mystery after the federal agent’s twin sister was killed in the Pentagon on 9/11.
Blessings and we value your thoughts.
Diane and David Munson
Authors of High Velocity Suspense tm
I have know David for many years having also been both a NIS Special Agent and a USCS Special Agent for 30 years. I consider David, and his wife Diane, to be friends and truly respect their long and succesful careers in law enforcement. Their books mimic real law enforcement proceedures rather then much of the junk you see on TV. If you haven’t read their books, you should. Best luck on your new Blog. Warm regards, Don Clark
Don: Thanks for your years of service. You could write a lot of scripts for Gibbs. Be Blessed
Good to hear from you again. We missed talking to you this year . Hopefully we will see you year coming up. I have only been called for Jury Duty once and did not have to go because it was settled out of court. Would like to have just for the experience but now am to old. Doris was called a couple of times and she was scared to death. Either case she was not selected to serve on a jury.
Wayne: Thanks for your willingness to serve on a Jury. You are never too old. A balanced jury needs mature thought.
I was selected for two different jurys on the same day. I was dismissed from the first Jury, a robbery of a supermarket cashier at the same supermarket chain where my wife was a cashier. Because of shortage of jurors I was sent to another court room. The second jury was a wrongful death law suit. I was seated on that jury. The trial lasted a week. It was a very interesting and emotional experience. But I enjoyed watching the battle between the two sides seeking justice for their clients.
Dave and Diane: I have served on jury duty twice. One was a murder case and the other a domestic violence issue. In both cases I found the time to be a great experience and I was most happy to serve.
I thoriughly enjoy reading your books because they bring to life the real-life experiences of our law enforcement community. I think every little boy dreams of being a policeman at some point in his life and your storylines allow me to experience that thrill while doing my real job…selling your books!
Hi Dave and Dianne, Yes, I have served on a jury. Once on the grand jury, which I served as secretary, in Illinois. Interesting, the judge was a former classmate and old friend. The second time, was after we moved to PA. It was for attempted murder. I was shocked that they accepted me since Jack is a retired police officer, but they did. Incidently, the guy was found guilty! He needed to be found guilgy too!! Donna