 According to Mr. Webster, a peer is defined as a person of equal
standing, as in rank, class or age. In other words, someone very
similar to the accused person.Why then, was I, a 50-year-old
woman with no criminal record and a mile-long to-do list, called in
to jury duty for a 19-year-old boy accused of a dalliance with an
underaged girl?
Why didn't they call a bunch of 19-year-old boys who had been
accused of the same crime?
What in heaven's name made me a peer to this young man? I don't
even own an iPod, and I wouldn't know what to do with it if I did.
I have no idea how a 19-year-old boy thinks. Who would? ... with
the exception of another 19-year-old boy.
I've had two 19-year-old boys of my own living with me, and I
still don't know what in the world they were thinking!
Girls were certainly high on the list, though. I know this
because the bathroom always smelled like Axe products when they were
done in there.
I couldn't, by the most amazing stretch of imagination, be
considered a "peer" for this young man. So what on earth was I doing
there? And what were the other people who were my peers doing there?
It's as if they simply chose our names at random!
OK, so I knew that ...
[to top of second column]
 |
 Put me on the case of a mom who was doing 60 in a 35 zone because
her 3-year-old had to potty and she forgot to put a Pull-Up in her
purse. That woman is my peer!
Show me a woman who was caught on the outside ledge of a
high-rise because her kid threw his binky out there and he wouldn't
stop screaming. Definitely a case of temporary insanity!
Seat me in a jury of other moms who could have been arrested as a
"Peeping Tom" for peering in the windows of a preschool to make sure
their child had stopped crying. Not guilty, I say! She had no
choice!
Tell me of the case of a woman caught climbing a tree to break
into a second-story window while her children watched from a car at
the curb. Been there, done that. Obviously, she locked herself and
her kids out of the house!
These women are my peers. I can say, without a doubt, that I
could deliver an informed verdict on these cases.
But a 19-year-old boy with too much time on his hands? All I know
for sure is that if he had been with my daughter, I would've removed
his testicles. Other than that ... I got nothing.
[By LAURA SNYDER]
Laura Snyder is a nationally syndicated
columnist, author and speaker. You can reach her at
lsnyder@lauraonlife.com
or visit www.lauraonlife.com
for more info. |
