Chapter 3 - Early Deliberations.
"Well how the hell do they expect us to come up with a unanimous verdict when we can't even agree upon a foreperson?" Her question is a blend of sarcasm and frustration, one not very appreciated in some quarters. "We have foreman." a middle-aged man snappily retorts while demonstrably lauding himself. "The vote was taken. It's done. Live with it, gal."
Burt Napier and Ida Baxter are stark opposites, a fact relatively apparent from the outset of the trial. Napier, a 44 year old commodities broker, is a control freak with a troubled personal history. Divorced twice, he battles occasional gambling and drinking demons. Baxter, age 27, is a single, career-oriented women's activist. With both her MBA and CPA, she is quickly climbing the corporate ladder at Kane Life and Financial Services. Nary a word had been exchanged between the two until the start of deliberations twelve minutes past. Since then, their personalities have blatantly clashed.
Lorenzo Sanders rises from his chair to intercept an irate Baxter as she circles around the conference table to confront Napier. A high school assistant principal and English teacher in the inner city, the 52 year-old Gotham native provides a calming voice of reason. As an African American educator in a ethnically diverse student population, Sanders is both accustomed and adept at the role of peacemaker. He too had volunteered to be jury foreman, but was dissuaded by the zealousness of both Napier and Baxter.
"OK. OK. So he (Napier) is our 'fearless leader'." Ida reluctantly concedes. "My question still remains valid. How can this group expect to reach a fair decision when we're looking at this case from so many different perspectives? I mean, look at Danny Boy over here. All he's interested in is her bra size!"
"Whoa! Whoa now!" objects a solidly built young man. "First off, my name's Dave, not Danny Boy. Second, just 'cause I don't wear fancy suits all day, don't mean I can't be objective!" 25 year-old David Hamilton is far more comfortable in a blue-collar environment than he is here. The single construction worker moved to the big city after completing high school. A life-long speech impediment tends to make him shy in the company of strangers. With his dander arisen, however, Hamilton sheds his shackles of self-consciousness.
"Yeah, I admit it. That Batgirl is somethin' else! I guess I figured she'd be thick-boned and muscular ... ya know ... real tough, but not exactly good lookin'. Instead, she's a total dish! The woman's unbelievable! I ain't gonna apologize for feelin' that way, but that won't keep me from doin' what's right!"
"We all must do our parts, David." observes Sister Carolyn Blake. "This is a challenge, given our varying backgrounds and what is at stake. The lord has brought the twelve of us together to perform a civic duty. Regardless of our respective faiths, we each must look within our own hearts, souls and minds to arrive at the just conclusion."
Sister Blake speaks from her heart with a warmth and conviction which belies her 36 years of age. A nationalized U.S. citizen, the Brittish-born Blake has worked in Catholic missions throughout the globe. This repeated exposure to people from varied cultures gives Blake considerable insight into the human condition. She regularly sees what mankind can achieve through cooperation; therefore she encourages her fellow jurors to embrace open-mindedness and tolerance. "Our diversity can be a strength if we allow it to be." she explains. "We draw from a deep well of life experiences. This can be an asset in helping each of us to fully evaluate the evidence we have seen."
Burt Napier sees the nun as a potential threat to his authority. He is tempted to quell her efforts for group unity, but he realizes that Ida Baxter is losing credibility as a result of Blake. The foreman decides to sanction the sister's ideas, reasoning that he will strengthen his own position via association.
Although they have all met, Sister Blake urges everyone to re-introduce themselves and provide a little background. She starts it off. Napier is next, followed by Sanders, Baxter and Hamilton. The remaining seven jurors each add their own capsule biographies to further break the ice.
The jury is completely balanced in terms of gender. Rudy Robertson, Otto Repp and Stanley Wallach are the other three male members. Robertson, age 37, is a systems analyst for Wayne Enterprises. A child from a mixed marriage, Robertson hails from a rural background. Still single, he relocated to Gotham City ten years ago for career reasons. Repp, a lifelong Gothamite, is the eldest juror. The widowed 67 year-old is a retired subway driver. A devoted family person, he remains close to his two sons and is the proud grandfather of two little girls. Wallach, 40, is a science fiction writer of modest accomplishment. His main source of income is through magazine articles, although he has written a novel and two scripts for low budget cable TV movies. Wallach shares an apartment with his girlfriend of eight years.
Although from different generations, there is a natural bond between Eartha Meriwether and Dina Collins. Meriwether,60, is married with three children and five grandchildren. She is a registered nurse who is slowly easing herself into retirement by working part-time. The 31-year old Collins is married and she is currently in the second trimester of her first pregnancy. Dina, a grade school teacher, adores children and should make "a great mother" according to nurse Eartha.
Shelley Merman, age 47, is a pharmacist on the upper west side of Gotham City. She is married and has three boys, two of whom are in college. Her youngest is a high school sophomore. Yvonne Newmar is a 29 year-old ballet dancer and instructor. Originally from Texas, Newmar moved to Gotham City in her late teens to pursue her career ambitions. The very attractive Newmar remains single, for her recent engagement fell through.
*****
Before engaging in serious case discussion and debate, Burt Napier suggests that the group conduct an initial survey to see where they are at the outset. Using small pieces of scratch paper, each juror jots down his/her preliminary opinion regarding the innocence or guilt of Batgirl on each charge. The secret ballots are placed in a baseball cap which is passed around the table.
Napier quickly tallies up the votes while the others look on intently. He smirks slightly before revealing the results. "Well, the totals are the same on both of the charges." he announces. "The split is 8 to 4, with the eight votes ruling that Batgirl is ..."
"Well how the hell do they expect us to come up with a unanimous verdict when we can't even agree upon a foreperson?" Her question is a blend of sarcasm and frustration, one not very appreciated in some quarters. "We have foreman." a middle-aged man snappily retorts while demonstrably lauding himself. "The vote was taken. It's done. Live with it, gal."
Burt Napier and Ida Baxter are stark opposites, a fact relatively apparent from the outset of the trial. Napier, a 44 year old commodities broker, is a control freak with a troubled personal history. Divorced twice, he battles occasional gambling and drinking demons. Baxter, age 27, is a single, career-oriented women's activist. With both her MBA and CPA, she is quickly climbing the corporate ladder at Kane Life and Financial Services. Nary a word had been exchanged between the two until the start of deliberations twelve minutes past. Since then, their personalities have blatantly clashed.
Lorenzo Sanders rises from his chair to intercept an irate Baxter as she circles around the conference table to confront Napier. A high school assistant principal and English teacher in the inner city, the 52 year-old Gotham native provides a calming voice of reason. As an African American educator in a ethnically diverse student population, Sanders is both accustomed and adept at the role of peacemaker. He too had volunteered to be jury foreman, but was dissuaded by the zealousness of both Napier and Baxter.
"OK. OK. So he (Napier) is our 'fearless leader'." Ida reluctantly concedes. "My question still remains valid. How can this group expect to reach a fair decision when we're looking at this case from so many different perspectives? I mean, look at Danny Boy over here. All he's interested in is her bra size!"
"Whoa! Whoa now!" objects a solidly built young man. "First off, my name's Dave, not Danny Boy. Second, just 'cause I don't wear fancy suits all day, don't mean I can't be objective!" 25 year-old David Hamilton is far more comfortable in a blue-collar environment than he is here. The single construction worker moved to the big city after completing high school. A life-long speech impediment tends to make him shy in the company of strangers. With his dander arisen, however, Hamilton sheds his shackles of self-consciousness.
"Yeah, I admit it. That Batgirl is somethin' else! I guess I figured she'd be thick-boned and muscular ... ya know ... real tough, but not exactly good lookin'. Instead, she's a total dish! The woman's unbelievable! I ain't gonna apologize for feelin' that way, but that won't keep me from doin' what's right!"
"We all must do our parts, David." observes Sister Carolyn Blake. "This is a challenge, given our varying backgrounds and what is at stake. The lord has brought the twelve of us together to perform a civic duty. Regardless of our respective faiths, we each must look within our own hearts, souls and minds to arrive at the just conclusion."
Sister Blake speaks from her heart with a warmth and conviction which belies her 36 years of age. A nationalized U.S. citizen, the Brittish-born Blake has worked in Catholic missions throughout the globe. This repeated exposure to people from varied cultures gives Blake considerable insight into the human condition. She regularly sees what mankind can achieve through cooperation; therefore she encourages her fellow jurors to embrace open-mindedness and tolerance. "Our diversity can be a strength if we allow it to be." she explains. "We draw from a deep well of life experiences. This can be an asset in helping each of us to fully evaluate the evidence we have seen."
Burt Napier sees the nun as a potential threat to his authority. He is tempted to quell her efforts for group unity, but he realizes that Ida Baxter is losing credibility as a result of Blake. The foreman decides to sanction the sister's ideas, reasoning that he will strengthen his own position via association.
Although they have all met, Sister Blake urges everyone to re-introduce themselves and provide a little background. She starts it off. Napier is next, followed by Sanders, Baxter and Hamilton. The remaining seven jurors each add their own capsule biographies to further break the ice.
The jury is completely balanced in terms of gender. Rudy Robertson, Otto Repp and Stanley Wallach are the other three male members. Robertson, age 37, is a systems analyst for Wayne Enterprises. A child from a mixed marriage, Robertson hails from a rural background. Still single, he relocated to Gotham City ten years ago for career reasons. Repp, a lifelong Gothamite, is the eldest juror. The widowed 67 year-old is a retired subway driver. A devoted family person, he remains close to his two sons and is the proud grandfather of two little girls. Wallach, 40, is a science fiction writer of modest accomplishment. His main source of income is through magazine articles, although he has written a novel and two scripts for low budget cable TV movies. Wallach shares an apartment with his girlfriend of eight years.
Although from different generations, there is a natural bond between Eartha Meriwether and Dina Collins. Meriwether,60, is married with three children and five grandchildren. She is a registered nurse who is slowly easing herself into retirement by working part-time. The 31-year old Collins is married and she is currently in the second trimester of her first pregnancy. Dina, a grade school teacher, adores children and should make "a great mother" according to nurse Eartha.
Shelley Merman, age 47, is a pharmacist on the upper west side of Gotham City. She is married and has three boys, two of whom are in college. Her youngest is a high school sophomore. Yvonne Newmar is a 29 year-old ballet dancer and instructor. Originally from Texas, Newmar moved to Gotham City in her late teens to pursue her career ambitions. The very attractive Newmar remains single, for her recent engagement fell through.
*****
Before engaging in serious case discussion and debate, Burt Napier suggests that the group conduct an initial survey to see where they are at the outset. Using small pieces of scratch paper, each juror jots down his/her preliminary opinion regarding the innocence or guilt of Batgirl on each charge. The secret ballots are placed in a baseball cap which is passed around the table.
Napier quickly tallies up the votes while the others look on intently. He smirks slightly before revealing the results. "Well, the totals are the same on both of the charges." he announces. "The split is 8 to 4, with the eight votes ruling that Batgirl is ..."