The jury duty thing

Spent another day in "Hurry Up and Wait" mode.

The voir dere that I was released from is STILL going on. Potential jury members who have been released from the process have been feeding me updates, and I am now on full prayer mode for the ones who are still up there - by all accounts, its grueling.

I have been told by two other men in the "pool" that they, like me, are survivors of such abuse. If there is anything good in this news, it is that I am not alone. They would have done the same thing as I did.

That Ohio has mandatory sentencing for these types of crimes against children raises another point - if found guilty on just one of three counts, this guy is going to prison for the remainder of his life. Two of three counts, life. All three, life.

And this makes me think - even if I weren't so close to this - the idea of taking a whole human life and locking up in a tight ugly box for the remiander of its days is a heavy burden to bear. Even if the defense and the prosecutors do their jobs to the point where the jury can make a decision, this guy either walks or he goes to jail for life. In this matter there is no paler shade of gray. The outcome is black or its white. The light is on or it is off. This guy is free or he is not.

I'm keeping those who are still up in that courtroom in heart and my mind. They are far stronger than I am, and I hate to imagine what they are about to embark upon.