On Monday, I responded to a summons to report to the Greene County Courthouse for Jury Duty. By mid-morning, I was known of as "juror number four" - an identification I wore until midday on Wednesday.
The trial was a criminal case. The charge was "Operating a Vehicle While Impaired." The defendant was a repeat offender. As Monday morning turned into a full day, then another day, and then an unexpected third day for continued deliberation in the jury room, I made a number of observations I believe are worth sharing.
I am glad God is the judge of all the earth (Gen. 18:25). I do not believe it is possible to give a completely accurate ruling on a case without knowing all the facts. Regardless of the diligence shown by the prosecuting attorneys, there was a lot of information we (the jurors) wanted. We all had similar questions that were not answered in the courtroom. We even sent one question back to the judge. The response we received was, "You have all the information needed to decide on this case." Well, no, we didn't. We didn't know the details about the defendant's past offenses. We didn't know exactly what happened when she and the arresting officer stepped out of the view of the video camera in his cruiser. And, we did not know the intent of the defendant. We certainly would have liked to have had this information. It would have reduced almost seven hours of deliberation down to a few minutes!
God has access to all of this information. He knows everything we do, say, and even think (Psalm 139:1-12, 23; Heb. 4:13). The judgment which God will render on that final day will truly be "righteous judgment" (Rom. 1:32, 2:5; 2 Thess. 1:5).
The importance of keeping an open mind and hearing both sides of an argument. "The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him" (Prov. 18:17). In deliberation, I learned many of my fellow jurors were originally convinced the defendant was not guilty. It was not until the second day of testimony that they changed their mind.
The same thing can happen to all of us every day. We see or hear things and immediately form opinions without stopping to get all of the facts. Many times this is harmless, as it regards things that are of little importance. However, when these observations cause us to act upon and share our opinions regarding others, we need to stop and get all the facts.
Our sins affect other people. We were told before the trial began that the case involved a single vehicle OVI; meaning there was not another vehicle involved - there were no victims. However, I saw two victims sitting brokenhearted behind the defendant throughout the trial - her parents. This being her fourth conviction for a similar charge, they knew the drill, but sat in that courtroom powerless to help their daughter. They know she is an alcoholic. They know she repeatedly drives when she is impaired. They were, perhaps, grateful this incident did not involve the injury of innocent people, but realize, as we did in the deliberation room, that it is only a matter of time before it will. As I looked at their faces, I saw a modern-day example of Proverbs 17:25, "A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her who bore him."