Casey Anthony’s “Juror No. 12,” a married, redheaded woman in her sixties, did her best. Randomly called upon to fulfill her civic responsibility — in this case, to labor through the horrifying testimonies of a woman accused of murder and her prosecutors — she made the decision she believed was right, she says. Instead of finding some way to weasel out of jury duty, she did what she had to. She did what was asked. She did things the straight way. And it fucked her.
Since Anthony’s acquittal, the juror has had to leave her life behind. Via phone, she quit her full-time gig as a chef at Publix supermarket, unable to withstand the ceaseless judgment of her co-workers, who, like many people, disagree with the case’s verdict. In fear of the death threats she says she’s been receiving, “Juror 12” has now even abandoned her own husband, running away into hiding at an undisclosed location. The juror’s husband says that just before she left, she uttered, “I’d rather go to jail than sit on a jury again.” Honestly, maybe she just saw this as an exit strategy from her marriage and job. But still: last time Juror 12 plays by the rules!
The miserable postscript for a Casey Anthony juror [Field Notes/MSNBC]
