Jury Duty

A few weeks have passed since I lost hundreds of dollars thanks to the legal system.

I got a form with questions like "what is your occupation?" Of course I put "security guard" because that's how I pay my rent, whether or not it is my vocation. When I was living in North Bay in 1990 or thereabouts and actually served on a jury I had put "screenwriter." Actually one time during the week from hell in Toronto I had the pleasure of seeing the author of Ginger Snaps called up. "Film and television writer" was her career description. I don't know if she made the final cut of jurors. For her sake I hope not. But after sitting in the holding area and being called into one courtroom after another to hear about a pending case and see this or that accused person and then being sent back to the waiting area if your name isn't called, maybe getting the service out of the way is best.

Even after I told a judge that I couldn't commit 5 weeks due to financial hardship, since my security company doesn't compensate for jury duty. I was sent back to the holding area. Only after I pushed and finally got through to the right person did I get dismissed. I don't have to serve for another 3 years, apparently. But I didn't really have to receive any summons at all. Even though "security guard" isn't one of the listed occupations that is excused from jury duty, shouldn't the SYSTEM bloody well KNOW by now that security guards barely make more than minumum wage and that their companies WON'T compensate them for jury duty???????!!!!! The thing that burns me is that there MUST be lots of security guards called in, losing AT LEAST a day's wages. How many times do they have to be told financial hardship is an issue for them? It's the indifference over this issue that rankles me. Institutional indifference.

I suppose it calls for actually looking up the right person to send a letter, as opposed to posting a blog that goes nowhere. But I can call this practice.
Either that or just more free time wasted.