Courthouse Deliberations

Many are called but few are chosen for the 6,500 jury trials held each year in Los Angeles County’s sprawling court system.

Culled from a master list of more than 4 million names, some 173,000 people promised to be fair and impartial arbiters of the truth and were sworn into the jury box last year.

What happened to the others on the way to the courthouse?

More than 1.2 million people didn’t qualify for a jury for reasons that ranged from not speaking English to being in jail. An additional 800,000 people claimed undue hardship, half of them because they were self-employed or their companies wouldn’t pay them for their days of jury service.

Jury service. That’s what court personnel prefer to call this involuntary draft that is the price we pay for being citizens of a democracy. Our names are coughed up by the computers at the Department of Motor Vehicles or plucked from the rolls of registered voters, according to Jury Services manager Gloria Gomez.

Although it might seem to anyone who serves year after year that the same 170,000 people always are called, Gomez assures us that the list is tossed out annually and created again from scratch.

Where you serve depends on where you live, and a juror’s quality of life varies from building to building. Most courthouses draw jurors from within a 20-mile radius. Sometimes that pool is expanded when a high profile trial looms and a larger jury pool is needed.

There are a few experiences common to all jurors--especially the introductory tape narrated by KNBC-TV Channel 4 anchor Kelly Lange, who urges jurors not to be offended if the lawyers don’t pick them. (She wasn’t.) Then there’s the love affair with puzzles, which makes jury duty seem like a rainy day during a beach vacation. The job entails a lot of waiting.

How much and for how long usually depends on the judge.

Depending on where you’re assigned, jury duty can be a mini-adventure, a relatively painless chore or, in the worst scenario, life as a mindless herd animal.

In general, the smaller courthouses with fewer trials can place jurors on call. On-call jurors phone the court each day after 5 p.m. to learn whether they must report the next morning. Larger, busier courthouses need all the bodies they can muster. If your boss insists that you serve your days consecutively, you wind up at the big courthouses--the downtown courts, Van Nuys, Pasadena, Compton--with a large scarlet “C” on your juror badge that virtually guarantees you’ll be called for every possible panel until you’re picked.

What follows is our consumer’s guide to jury duty. If you vote or if you drive, chances are pretty good they’re gonna get ya someday.

Waiting and Waiting and . . .

Many of the juror assignments are to buildings that can include both Superior and some Municipal courts.

At the two big downtown Los Angeles courts, the parking is cumbersome and the facilities dingy, grim and institutional. Sometimes the air conditioning works, and sometimes it doesn’t. And what is that black ash around the vents? You park at the new Music Center concert garage and either hike a couple of blocks or grab a shuttle. Lunch options are somewhat limited, and it’s almost impossible to get on call, but at least you can serve your 10 days consecutively.

The Criminal Courts Building’s lounges are crowded, and some of the furniture is broken. There aren’t enough seats, and the chairs they do have are so worn, they feel like bucket seats. Elevators are notoriously slow, a real nuisance when you’re shuttling back and forth from the 11th floor. In the afternoons, the scent of greasy meat escapes from the first-floor cafeteria and permeates the elevator shafts, which can turn your stomach if you’re in the throes of a gruesome case.

The County Courthouse (sometimes known as the Civil Courts Building) is jampacked and institutional too. Serving here is more like being stuck at a hub airport during a holiday snowstorm. But it could be worse. You could be up the block at the Criminal Courts Building. A nice outdoor coffee bar and ATM machines in the courtyard earn an extra gavel.

In Pasadena, you’ll probably get on a jury within a day or so. You may actually wish you had stayed in the jury room here because Pasadena has by far the best reading material.

In Santa Monica, you can opt to be on call. But who would want to, given that lunch breaks can last two hours and the beach is just three blocks away? You’re within a few steps of Santa Monica Place and Main Street.

Jurors can nosh during breaks at the outdoor rooftop cafe, where flowers decorate the tables and the view of the Santa Monica Bay can make the nasty details of a murder case momentarily melt away.

Long Beach also features a jury room with a view. Of the Queen Mary, no less. But here, the pigeon population is kept at bay by a pair of nesting peregrine falcons--predators that during the mating and chick season have been known to dive-bomb unsuspecting jurors who venture onto the balcony for a quick smoke.

San Fernando’s jury room, renovated after the Northridge earthquake trashed the courthouse, still smells like a new house. Dubbed “the garden room” by courthouse wags, it occupies much of the basement and offers only a view of the trunks of palm trees. The Spanish-style courthouse is small enough that jurors stay on call until they are needed. For lunch, courthouse regulars recommend the Frank Sinatra Room at the Casa de Pizza in nearby Granada Hills.

In Van Nuys, you practically need a papal dispensation to go on call. The lines at the metal detectors can snake out the door and around the corner. But be grateful for them. These metal detectors turn up more weapons and contraband than any other branch court’s. The Van Nuys experience also offers a shady courtyard, garage parking and a post office and library nearby.

Burbank’s small-town atmosphere and friendly staff make this a pleasant place to serve. There is ample garage parking, and there isn’t a metal detector in sight. Everyone goes on call, but if your employer insists on consecutive days of service, you have to transfer to a bigger courthouse like Van Nuys or Pasadena. If you stay in Burbank, count on meeting lots of studio people among your fellow jurors. The media center is nearby, and beautiful downtown Burbank offers ample lunch and shopping.

In Lancaster, your lunch options consist of fast food, fast food and fast food. The amenities in the bungalow built for jurors include posters of fighter planes. The courthouse itself is prone to plumbing backups. During a tour a month ago, the chief justice of the state Supreme Court called this courthouse one of the worst in the state. And the lack of covered parking in the High Desert strikes us as cruel and unusual punishment.

Compton has a busy, 12-story courthouse, and being on call is generally not an option. Pale green is the color of choice in the jury lounge. Magazines are scarce. Parking is easy, but the lines for the metal detectors are long in the morning. The courthouse cafeteria, just steps from the jury lounge, features fare such as fried catfish ($4.19) and fried red snapper($3.99). There is a juror’s special for $3.55.

The Pomona jury room is a vision in beige. Walls, couches, even the floral arrangements are beige. The reading materials are eclectic. Titles include Western Outdoors, West Ways, Video and Farandula Internacional, a San Francisco-based Spanish magazine. And about 70 boxes of puzzles sit piled high on a shelf, though there are few tables available to actually put them together. Still, there are free coffee and cookies to greet jurors! Lunch hours can be spent strolling around the nearby antiques district.

In Torrance, a nice stone exterior conceals what is commonly acknowledged as the worst jury lounge in the system. The cafeteria is a dark, dingy, greasy spoon where jurors sit elbow to elbow like passengers in steerage. At least it sells Alka Seltzer, no doubt after receiving so many requests. The outdoor “patio” is really a loading dock.

Parking is at the far end of a lot the size of a football field. The basement jury lounge boasts such amenities as florescent lights and linoleum. There are no windows, and it is so crowded that some jurors sit on the floor. Others spill out into the hall.

As for Municipal Courts, where else but in Malibu would it be necessary to post on the courtroom doors a sign that reads, “Persons wearing shorts, bathing suits or with bare feet not permitted in court”?

Here, you can find yourself sharing the restrooms with 12-stepping celebrity defendants. There is no jury lounge. Everyone winds up on call. The parking lot has an ocean view, and there are great shops and restaurants within walking distance. The hours tend to be abbreviated at the courthouse by the sea.

But unlucky jurors get shipped inland to a satellite court in a strip mall in Calabasas, where people who live in gated communities can find themselves sitting on the floor. There are 15-minute bathroom breaks, but with 36 jurors vying for two stalls . . . well, you do the math.

In Beverly Hills, court officials also occasionally run the bait and switch. You think you’re being summoned to the upscale courthouse in 90210, with its polished stone floors and wooden benches. But some unsuspecting jurors find themselves dispatched to West Los Angeles, where they pass the hours in a trailer with stained carpets and a breathtaking view of a loading dock.

Who does jury service in Beverly Hills? “We get a lot of small movie stars, the ones you recognize but nobody knows their names,” said Supervisor Penny Walker. Famous jurors have included John Lithgow, Warren Christopher and Chief Justice Ronald George of the state Supreme Court.

Alhambra’s Municipal Court is the very picture of generic suburbia. The jury lounge is spacious, with big windows, carpeted floors and pastel walls. Easy parking and the absence of metal detectors make jury duty here relatively stress-free.

Downey’s four-story Municipal Court building has a kitchen in the jury lounge, with a refrigerator, a microwave and coffee maker. Coffee is 25 cents, paid in full to a small basket on the counter. There’s a television set, but no cable. Reading material ranges from Young Miss to Modern Maturity.

A snack bar in the lobby and an ATM make jury service here a breeze, even if restaurant options are limited. We even liked the sign on the monitor’s office:

“Jurors: This is a high income job, please don’t forget to report this additional income on your tax returns. After all, 62 cents an hour jobs don’t grow on trees.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

The Verdict on Jury Duty

A team of Times reporters surveyed jury conditions at courthouses from Long Beach to Lancaster. Results of their highly unscientific study follow.

BY THE NUMBERS

4 million: Summons or questionnaires mailed in 1996-97

2.3 million: Prospective jurors

370,000: Qualified

173,000: Served

6,531: Jury trials

1.2 million: Excused

Reasons for being excused:

840,000: Financial

238,000: Medical

$7.5 million: Juror fees and mileage ($5 per day plus 15 cents per mile, one way)

RATING L.A. COUNTY’S COURTHOUSES

Hours: Can you be on call? Can you get postponements? Are you going to be there from 9-5 or 11-4? Do you get a two-hour lunch break? Are you waiting around?

Parking: Do you have covered parking close by, or must you park a football field away under the desert sun? How much of a hassle is getting your parking voucher validated?

Ambience: Is the architecture pleasing or standard government issue? Are there metal detectors at the doors? Are there grafitti or signs of earthquake damage?

Lunch: Are the options varied? Is it possible to get a healthy meal within walking distance? Can jury duty become an epicurean adventure?

Amusements: What is the availability of windows, TVs, puzzles, current magazines, napping rooms, phones, outlets and jacks for laptop computers, and snacking options. Bonus points for any celebrity sightings.

SUPERIOR COURT: Santa Monica

Total: 13

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: ***

Lunch: ***

Amusements: ***

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Burbank

Total: 12

Hours: **

Parking: ***

Ambience: **

Lunch: ***

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Pasadena

Total: 12 Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: ***

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: San Fernando

Total: 11

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: ***

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Van Nuys

Total: 10

Hours: *

Parking: ***

Ambience: **

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Central Civil

Total: 9

Hours: *

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Compton

Total: 9

Hours: *

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Long Beach

Total: 9

Hours: *

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Pomona

Total: 9

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: *

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Criminal Courts Bldg.

Total: 7

Hours: *

Parking: *

Ambience: *

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Lancaster

Total: 7

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: *

Lunch: *

Amusements: *

*

SUPERIOR COURT: Torrance

Total: 5

Hours: *

Parking: *

Ambience: *

Lunch: *

Amusements: *

MUNICIPAL COURTS: Malibu

Total: 15

Hours: ***

Parking: ***

Ambience: ***

Lunch: ***

Amusements: ***

*

MUNICIPAL COURTS: Beverly Hills

Total: 12

Hours: **

Parking: ***

Ambience: **

Lunch: ***

Amusements: **

*

MUNICIPAL COURTS: Alhambra

Total: 11

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: ***

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

MUNICIPAL COURTS: Downey

Total: 10

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

MUNICIPAL COURTS: Glendale

Total: 10

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: **

Amusements: **

*

MUNICIPAL COURTS: Newhall

Total: 9

Hours: **

Parking: **

Ambience: **

Lunch: *

Amusements: **

*

MUNICIPAL COURTS: West L.A.

Total: 7

Hours: **

Parking: *

Ambience: *

Lunch: **

Amusements: *

*

Ratings:

*The Ugly

**The Blah

***The Good

Contributors: Susan Abram, Sue McAllister, Andrew Blankenstein, Tracy Johnson, Evelyn Larrubia, Ann W. O’Neill, Darryl Satzman, Julia Scheeres, Doug Shuit, Doug Smith, Frank Sotomayor and Daniel Yi