Only twice in my life have I received letters from our judicial system informing me that I may be chosen for jury duty. Both times I've filled out their general questionnaire regarding my occupation and place of employment. Yet, I've never been called to fulfill such an important role. Why is that? Is it because I work for the Michigan Department of Corrections? Is it because my profile indicates that I'm too one-sided, that I couldn't possibly weigh all the evidence before making my decision, my vote, as to "guilty" or "innocent"?
During the past week I've been mulling over the possibilities regarding the disappearance of Tara Lynn Grant. I wanted to believe, as tragic as it may seem, that she found a Puerto Rican lover and left her family. I wanted to believe that her husband (yes, I've heard that he cheated on her) was devastated, that he kept a solid front for the sake of his children. However, I knew, deep down inside, that he had killed her. When they started searching Stony Creek and the surrounding area, I kept wondering whether they would send a dive team over to the dam, a place I used to sneak off to and fish and drink beer.
I grew up approximately a half-mile away from where they found Tara's torso. Some of my high school friends lived in the subdivision the police cordoned off. My brother and I jogged the same trails that Tara had. It's been said over and over, by many people, I can't believe something like this would happen in my neighborhood. Well guess what? It does. In fact, where I currently live, just two streets over, a young man was badly beaten at a houseparty and thrown outside. He was discovered the next morning. The person responsible for his murder (I truly believe there were more culprits) is doing time at the Adrian Correctional Facility.
In the case of Tara Lynn Grant, I wish my intuition were wrong. Now the question is: did someone help her husband with the dismemberment and disposal of the body? Lastly, how many years in prison will the husband serve? Or will he get lucky, like the Freezer Man, and do less than ten years for a crime of passion? I don't know. I'm just hoping, for his sake anyway, that I'm not summoned for jury duty.
16 comments:
They always excused pastors too.
this is a tragic story, who knows what goes through a killers mind. I'm sure you are close to this kind of thing in the field you have chosen.
always appreciate your visits!
I cannot serve on a jury in Cook County until the day my son turns 18-- technically, the custody case between an ex-girlfriend and myself is open until that day. No one involved in an ongoing court case can serve on a jury. Besides my wonderful son, it's one of the few favors she ever did me.
My brother served on a murder jury recently. I think you're probably lucky if they don't pick you. You've probably got an exempt card, but because of your profession.
I live in a nice neighborhood of Vancouver, and there were two different murders within blocks of my house last weekend. Both people were shot on the street. It's scary when that happens.
Josie
(P.S. that looks like a nice dog)
Ugh, so sad.
It really sucks that the punishment rarely seems to fit the crime.
I hope this guy had no help in his dirty work.
I have been called for jury duty a number of times & what I beleive is that if you are strongly opinionated, especially on areas of religion or lack thereof, you get weeded out.
I'm unsure how I would react to doing jury duty - being coerced to participate in something, that too often seems far from just...
arrrrgggghhh....how can things like this happen in a world? Here, we have massacres over X-boxes.....
And they paint the house, mow the yard, and sell it a bargain price to an investor....
A graveyard....
I've been called for Jury Duty several times but only had to serve once. I hope never again because it was a "Shaken Baby syndrome" trial and we got to see a lot of forensic evidence that made it hard for me to sleep and eat during the course of that week, and for days after.
Jim, Steven Grant was capture early this morning and looks like his Attorney is stepping down which are signs of a confessed murdered! --Bro, Ron
JR you nailed this one all the way. Nice post and vision. MW
I am a psych nurse they would never pick me, it would be interesting to do, but emotional depending on the case as well. if it went to long I would turn into a bitch without computer access.
I was in the jury pool but they didn't get up to my number. What a relief. Not that I wouldn't do my civic duty if called upon.
If I read the story right this morning...they found her torso in his garage. I have one brother that lives in Washington TWSHP (by the entrance to Stony Creek) and another in Mt. Clemens where the husband owned a business.
Remember my Valentine's Day post about the saxophone in the attic? Well, just one short block (three houses away)from our house, two youths had to "kill a white man" as part of initiation into a gang. So they picked a likely neighborhood to find a candidate, went up to a couple out for a walk on Lovejoy Street(just a few weeks before their wedding), pulled out a gun and shot the guy three times--totally random. He was dead before the ambulance arrived. The boys were never apprehended but reportedly did get into the Chicago-based gang. That was a "Leave it to Beaver" neighborhood until that happened. Then everyone was afraid to go out for walks.
Keep us posted on this case.
Recently, I was scheduled for jury duty. I sat in a big room of potential jurors until my name was called. We were escorted to the waiting area outside of the criminal court room. Soon after, the defendent, his family and attorney were, I believe intentionally, paraded before us into an office. Soon after, we were told that the defendent decided to plead guilty out of fear of going to trial. Since we had done our jobs so effectively (albeit unknowingly), we were released after only one day. Woohoo!
That story is crazy -- I don't think passion is an excuse.
Jim, This whole Tara Grant murder case was creepy from day one especially where the murder took place and the body parts found WHICH were so close to where we grew up!!! --Bro, Ron
Post a Comment