...Now that everyone was settled in their seats and all the small court business taken care of it was time for the jury to be brought in. I was very anxious to see what they looked like and their exact demographic makeup. If you follow criminal justice at all then you know that jury selection can actually make or break a case for either side. Depending on the type of crime committed and the type of victim in each case if the jury consists of male/female, old/young, white/minority, education level and personal experiences leaning in one particular direction it can change the outcome of the verdict dramatically.
The jury came in and sat down in their box and because of my very close proximity I was able to scan every one of their faces. I took note of who they were and I watched every reaction they had to the delivery of the prosecution and defense attorney's arguments. I grasped at anything I could to give myself some insight as to which way they might vote when the time came.
Side note: I was and have always been very interested in the law and trials in particular and seriously considered becoming a prosecutor in my early high school age years. Even though this trial was as personal as it was going to get for me I took in everything I could as far as the process. It was extremely interesting to see this play out in front of my eyes yet in no way tainted or diminished its importance.
The prosecution went first and Joe Kahn got up and delivered an eloquent closing argument full of the facts in the case that he laid out very methodically yet passionately. He described Marsalis as a fraud and a predator who used charm to gain the victims trust with the specific intent of drugging and sexually assaulting them. He explained Marsalis was someone who took no responsibility for his actions. He told the jury that the women didn't know each other but got up one by one and testified to very similar stories of their encounters with Marsalis and to waking up in a fog while being sexually assaulted.
In direct contrast the defense attorney got up and described his client as a man who, yes, lied about his career among other things but did nothing else wrong. He went directly to the victim blaming as quickly as he could. He explained all the women were bitter and angry that they were duped by Marsalis on Match.com calling himself Dr. Jeff. They went out on dates with him, drank too much, had sex with him in hopes of landing a doctor and when they found out it wasn't true they all cried rape.
I watched those jurors so closely during each argument and really thought I could see them responding well to what the prosecutor was saying. Good thing I didn't quit my day job and take up speculating as a career!
The judge gave the jury their final instructions, sent them off to begin deliberating and adjourned for the day. The courtroom emptied out except for Joe and his team and the victims. We stayed for quite awhile after talking to him as he explained what would happen next and answered all our questions. Joe had become a real life hero to all of us and regardless of what was to happen next we made sure that he knew it. He deserved the unwanted praise for all that he had given to the case. We were exhausted and it was late into the evening by the time we left the courthouse.
You know the saying "waiting is the hardest part"? I would live it until the verdict came in...
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