Whenever I have gotten as far as the box during voir dire I have been excused by attorneys for one side or the other, using one of their peremptory challenges. The one exception was retaliatory—I was towards the end of several days of service, and had acquired something of a reputation among the rest of the pool. A laywer who had excused me previously left me on, clearly, as punishment for being a smartass.

The trial was of a woman who had picked up a stray dog in the street and taken care of it for several days. The ostensible owner found the dog and demanded it back, but the woman demanded proof it had been his. At some point said owner kvetches to an off-duty highway patrol officer at a nearby hamurger stand, who accompanies the man to this woman’s house. He snatches up the dog and the woman loses it and trash-talks the CHP into arresting her. Charge: dognapping or conversion.

Neither prosecution nor defense managed to portray events and more importantly motivations and intents faithfully, but three jurors divined the real deal (two people clash with major problems handling anger, and one invokes the terrible power of the State), and persuaded me to join them in opposition to the knee-jerk hang-her-high dog lovers. It was a hung jury, and needless to say the State did not file again. And I think justice was served, and I learned a lot.

So thanks again Ms. Prosecutor bee-atch