The
PUBLISHER’S
Pen
I had been following a particular case out of
Detroit for the better part of last year. It was
about a prominent public figure (and former
City Council President) who had been
charged with committing a very serious
charge against a then-Detroit Public School
student: Sexual harassment. Never mind
the fact(s) that one of the defendants is
Charles A. Pugh and that he is gay.
(Full disclosure: I have known Pugh’s family
for decades.)
What I wondered was how it was possible to
have a jury in the City of Detroit who didn’t
know Charles A. Pugh OR his family. That
not withstanding, the Honorable David M.
Lawson of the Eastern District of Michigan’s
United States District Court was able to
accomplish the arduous task of seating a
jury in K.S. v. Detroit Public Schools, et al.
And, the civil trial began on November 3rd.
Meanwhile, I was planning the “Opening
Day” launch of MARQUEE and battling with
scripts forwarded to me from personal
friends and immediate family. Mostly editing
submissions. But, spending a lot of time
with it. All of a sudden, I receive a jury duty
summons notification informing me that I am
required, by law, to appear at the Essex
County (NJ) Courthouse on January 27th.
I duly note it. I keep working.
Not only did I learn a thing or two about the
jury selection process in Detroit, I learned
how it works in Newark as well.
Two different cities. Two similar court
systems. One has high-profile cases
involving local politicians. The other has a
national figure who’s legal counsel knows
every trick in the book.
What happens to those who answer their
civic responsibility? We’ll see. And, it ain’t
personal. Or, is it?