Jury Duty: Part Three

Continued from Jury Duty: Part One and Jury Duty: Part Two

We closed this case on July 3, 2012.  Every day I still think about the plaintiff and the family of the defendant who lost their son.  I see vehicles similar to those involved in this case and can't help but think about it.  I think about how very different things could have been for both parties in this case -- how one moment, one split-second decision could have changed the outcomes greatly.  And it drives home for me how fragile life is and reminds me constantly that life can change in a second.

There was no celebration by the plaintiff when the verdict was read.  There was relief, sure.  When we hugged outside the courtroom, the mood was still solemn and pensive.  The reality is that the 10+ million dollars we awarded to the plaintiffs will not change the fact that their lives have changed forever.  It does not erase the memory of that day.  It does not cure the pain.  It does not send the plaintiff back to work.

I can't help but wonder what it all matters.  Knowing now what I do about details of the case not presented to us during the trial and about the post-trial motions, I know that the plaintiff likely won't see all of that money, but I take comfort knowing that our verdict paved the way for him to receive a substantial enough amount that he and his wife will, at the least, recoup their losses.  Still, in moments of anger and frustration over the experience a part of me wonders why the court put the ten of us through this ordeal if they weren't going to take our word as gold.

In my conversation with the defense attorney after the trial closed, I learned that his client really does feel that they are not responsible for any of the damages in this case.  They have, for years, denied any liability.  It's not out of self-protection or disrespect for the plaintiff.  They just really feel that the accident was unavoidable and no one person's fault.  Their feelings simply aren't justified.  The details of the case are too many to describe here, but I can say with reasonable certainty that the company implicated in this suit was negligent, even if their employee who was driving the vehicle was not individually responsible.

People judge.  Family members and friends who I've shared the details of this case with make flippant comments like "Wow, good job bankrupting that company!" or "Whoa!  10.5 million dollars?  They'll never see it."  I understand that they don't have all of the information.  They can't.  They weren't in that court room to hear all of the evidence.  The jury was, and we are the only ones who truly know whether or not that number was justified.  Never again will I question another jury's decision.  I know now that what the public hears and sees regarding court cases is so limited compared to the vast amount of information presented to the jury.  Of course the public will come to a different decision -- it doesn't have all of the information.

It was the role of the ten of us to act as the judge in this case, and we did just that.  We delivered a verdict based on the evidence, and we stand behind it.  I would encourage anyone who is called for jury duty to appear before the court with an open mind.  So many people work so hard to be excused from jury duty.  It's our responsibility as citizens, and it's an experience worth having even if it is one of the most difficult things you'll ever do.