Opinion

The jury's still out on justice and civic duty

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

The ongoing HBO series "Newsroom" is one of my favorite TV guilty pleasures.

Obviously partly for its setting, the newsroom of a network TV news operation, as well as the peek inside the soul-searching and teeth-gnashing that go along with news coverage and its myriad of decisions whether you're in the air-traffic controller's seat at a small-town daily or in the producer's chair of a major TV network.

The dialogue sings through the voice of Aaron Sorkin, he of "The West Wing" fame. The writing is witty. It's cerebral. And above all it's interesting and feeds the storyline.

The other night it really put my sensibilities right into the mix.

The story centered around the real-life news story (as it usually does) of the Boston Marathon bombing.

Network news producer Don Keefer was out of the station, having been called to jury duty when news of the tragedy unfolded. As he waited to be called to the jury box for consideration, his cell phone alerted him to what was happening and he jumped out of his seat, waving for attention as he desperately hoped to get back to his New York office.

"There's been an explosion at the Boston Marathon and I have to get back to my newsroom," he tells the judge who reluctantly allows him to approach the bench.

As the opposing attorneys ask all the questions America wanted to know in those first few moments, Keefer says "these are all things I'd like to answer, too, but I can't find them out from here."

Initially the judge has little regard for the news producer's plight.

"All these other people have somewhere else to be, too," the judge reasons. "I'm sure your network can do the news without you."

"You're probably right," Keefer responds, "but I'd hate for my boss to find that out."

As the judge tells him to take his seat Keefer launches into Sorkin speak, telling the attorneys, "Look, you don't want leaders on the jury, right? Anyone who can take charge during deliberations? I run a newscast five nights a week with a staff of 60 and I bend them to my will."

After he speaks of being a defendant himself in two lawsuits and there's no way he's "finding for the plaintiff," the judge caves in and hollers, "You're dismissed."

Now that's certainly classic Sorkin, but it also borders on shirking one's civic duty, not something I care to do.

In fact, I've wanted to serve on a jury. But no one will let me.

Always thought it would be an intriguing experience. An excellent column idea if nothing else.

Just the other day I got an envelope from Putnam Circuit Court, asking me to fill out a questionnaire as a prospective juror for the period Jan. 1-June 30, 2015. It appears as though several hundred of us have been called to duty, since stepson Sam, who now lives in Chicago, got a letter as No. 624.

This isn't the first time I've stuck my toe in the jury pool. In fact, the past two federal court venires contained my name. Might really have been interesting back in September if I'd been one of the 12 federal court jurors picked for the police brutality case we covered.

But only once have I ever even made it to the jury box for consideration. That was a while ago. Del Brewer was the prosecutor, and I believe leisure suits were all the rage.

Del also was a neighbor at the time, and as luck would have it, only few days prior had helped me repair a couple shingles on my roof following a big windstorm.

So I never expected to last among the 12 angry men in court that day, but the defense attorney wouldn't just dismiss me.

At least not until he started asking questions about the prosecutor being an acquaintance and launching Perry Mason-like into an "isn't it true" moment where he brought up the rooftop exploits of a few days past. It was all just so theatrical that I couldn't contain myself.

I looked at him and blurted out, "You know you're going to dismiss me. I know you're going to dismiss me. So why don't you just dismiss me?"

How I kept from being cited from contempt of court, I'll never know.

Maybe it was because the judge himself got a good laugh out of it.

Yep, as John Milton once wrote, "They also serve who only stand and wait."

But unless "to serve man" is indeed a cookbook as an old "Twilight Zone" episode insinuated, I'm not sure I can stand waiting much longer to serve.

Justice be done?

The jury's still out ...