Be Careful The Company You Keep

I had jury duty this week and was selected for a trial. I can talk about it now because the case is over but I will still be vague as to the complete nature of the crime. However, I feel the need to share this valuable lesson I learned while working on this case.

The Defendant in this case was what you would consider an accessory to the crime - although they used other terms in the actual proceedings. The person who committed the actual crime was a friend of the Defendant and they hung out together a lot. I don't doubt that the Defendant in our case probably knew that the other man was of questionable character but they remained friends none the less.

We the Jury listened to all the evidence in the case and there was a lot, but it dealt almost entirely with the main person who committed the crime. In fact there was not one piece of evidence presented to us that proved that the Defendant knew anything about the crime before it happened. It appeared to us that he had the misfortune of being asked to drive a car to the scene to pick up the other person who actually was committing the crime. Having no evidence presented that he knew of the crime before hand, we found the Defendant innocent of the charges.

Here is the kicker: We found out after the case was closed that the Defendant in our case had spent the last three years of his life in jail. He was arrested at the scene and it took 3 years for his case to come to trial. Three years!! That is very upsetting to me and I'm sure even more upsetting to him. But it did send a wake-up call to me, and hopefully anyone who might read this.

Be mindful of the people you associate with. If you feel a person is of questionable character, listen to that voice in your head and always think twice before you offer to help them.