Is there such a thing as a dysfunctional jury? 
If you apply the definition of dysfunctional from The Free Dictionary, “abnormal or impaired functioning” then surely some might agree that a jury can be dysfunctional. Some might even point to the Casey Anthony jury as an example. I know. I know. You are probably tired of hearing about Anthony, but it is quite apparent that a lot of people are not. So, let’s do one more beatdown, because the horse is not yet dead.
Anthony got all dolled-up today, let her hair down and put on her Hollywood demeanor. She thought that today she was going home – wherever that turns out to be. Sorry Casey, not so fast, ‘cause here come de judge. Okay, I was momentarily carried away with the satire, but many people think that the outcome of Anthony’s trial is so pathetic it is almost laughable. And, by the way, the judge decided not to release “Tot Mom” today as some thought he would. He’s holding her behind bars until next Wednesday. But back to the subject. Recently, when I overheard someone making no bones about the fact the he was irate about the verdict, I couldn’t help but pay closer attention when he said, “The damn jury was dysfunctional.” Then, he added that if the alternate juror who was the first to come forward and make a public statement about why the other jurors decided as they did was representative of them all, then the reason for the outcome was understandable. “Can you spell D-O-R-K?” he asked?
Okay, humor and denigration aside, at this very moment, Judge Belvin Perry is on the bench discussing with media organizations whether the names of the jurors should be released to the public – now, later, or never. What happened — as far as the verdict rendered — has happened. It is a deal that cannot be undone. But why add fuel to the fire? In this crazy world we live in releasing the names of the Anthony jurors would not only reinforce opposition to serving, which numerous people already have, but it could very well endanger those jurors.
Legal devotees and civic minded citizens can reiterate as many times as they want that jury service is a civic duty. Dissenters would say, then let those who want to serve, serve. There are some takers out there. But many people called to serve do not serve by choice and to force them into service and later reveal their identities to the public is insane. This is the world that we live in. Insane!
As much as people, particularly the media, want to know who the Anthony jurors are, releasing their names – be they dysfunctional or not – is paramount to throwing them to the wolves. If you are chomping at the bit to have their names released, ask yourself, if you had been one of the jurors on the Anthony trial and the outcome and subsequent fallout had been the same would you want to be identified? The decision to identify themselves should be left to the individuals who served.
