I've been on only one jury: a first-degree murder trial of an 18-year-old Latino accused in the stabbing death of his father. A guilty verdict meant an automatic death sentence. The case appeared to be open-and-shut: The defendant had a weak alibi; a knife he claimed to have lost was found at the murder scene; and several witnesses either heard screaming, saw the killing or the teen fleeing the scene.
Eleven of us immediately voted guilty. Only one juror voted not guilty. We all thought we'd be out of there quickly. I think that at first the guy voted not guilty more for the sake of discussion. Guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, you know.
As deliberations unfolded, it became apparent there was quite a range of personalities in the room. A few fights nearly broke out. In the end, the guy ended up convincing all of us that a not-guilty verdict was appropriate.
It was like something out of a movie.
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