PSU Magazine Winter 1994

have raised the specter of post-judg– ment relief. But the bar, much to it cred it, was brave enough to say, 'If there's a problem, we need to face it."' If past civil litigants or criminal defendants decided to seek relief on the grounds of unrepresentative juries, the result cou ld have been new trials in hundreds of old cases. But while the county's basic demo– graphic anxiety has been eased, court administrators still hope to correct ome of the skews in the system. For example, the typical juror is a married, white homeowner over 35 who works full time for a private company which pay his or her wages during jury duty. The e juror 'demographic "opposite "-renters, young people, the se lf-empl yed, those (probably women) who must care for dependents, and those who e employers won't pay their wages-are le s li kely to serve. The PSU urvey helped the MBA come up with a et of recommended improvements, ch ief of which is a switch to a "one-day, one-trial" system, which would lighten many of the burdens created by the current two-week jury call. People would be requ ired to show up for one day at a time. If they were not placed on a jury that day, they cou ld go home. If they were empaneled, they would have to erve for the length of the trial. Most Multnomah County trials take a day or le s to complete The MBA al o recommends stricter enforcement of limits on being excused, raising jurors' per diem compen ation, and providing child care, bu passes, and parking money. Enhancing a embly room amenities is also on the list. At present these amenit ies are minimal. Reyburn recalls, "You're sitting in thi great big room with the e bright lights. It' totally self-contained. There's a little kitchenette thing, bathrooms, telephones. It's like being in prison." Bray agree . "The jury room is grim," he ay . But, he cautions, "we live in a Mea ure Five environment" in which money for improvement is carce. He favors the one-day, one-trial system as a solution to the physical discomfort of jury duty. "I want the ir stay in that room to be so brief that it's just not an inconven– ience for them," he ay . Even with its current problems, the Multnomah County courts compare favorab ly with most other urban jurisdictions. The great majority of civil and criminal ca es are ettled before trial. According to Bray, those civil cases that are tried are completed within a year of filing, compared with two- and three-year delays in other parts of the country. '' Changing to a one-day, one-trial system would be like opening the sluice gates in a sluggish canal. '' Multnomah County conducts 16 civil and 52 criminal trial in an average month, with three or four new trial assignment each day. And the mall jury pool i sti ll enough to keep the system moving, unlike in New York state, where some trials are stalled because the jury pool has dried up almo t comp letely. New York has recently begun a study of its jury selection y tern, and the MBA/PSU report has been provided to its panel of investigators. Changing to a one-day, one-trial system would be like opening the sluice gates in a sluggish canal. Hundreds more potential jurors would sweep through the system. According to Haggerty, not everyone is crazy about that prospect. "The biggest obstacle is probably the judges," he says. "They like trained jurors. Then they don't have to spend as much time instructing the juries." Juror ignorance could be reduced through the public education measures recommended by the MBA subcom– mittee, including production of instructional videos and information WINTER 1994 7