Today was just as bad as Monday only not quite as long.
I arrived at 10.15am, all 30 of us had been asked to return today. At 11am 30 were whittled down to 18 and again I was one of the 18 asked to stay on.
We were told that there were two trials on for today. We sat waiting for 2 hours and at 1pm we were told that both defendants had pleaded guilty to their charges therefore both trials would not be happening.
The 12 people whose names hadn't been picked out were told that they could go home. They will not be needed tomorrow and no trials start on Fridays (courts only run on Fridays for existing trials) so they were told to return on Monday morning at 10.30am.
For one blissful moment we thought that we too would be released as scheduled trials for today would not be going ahead. Then another man entered the room and said to the usher that there was the possibility that a trial would be coming over from Preston this afternoon. Just a possibilty mind, the judge was going to make a decision over lunch and would let us know after that. We were told at 1pm to go for some lunch and return at 2.15pm to see if we would be required this afternoon.
This was all too similar to Monday. We moaned and groaned and thought we would be stuck there until 4.30pm again. We had our lunch and a mooch round Burnley and returned to court at 2.15pm. At 3pm the usher informed us that the trial is indeed coming to Burnley from Preston.......but not until tomorrow so we were free to go and could we come back tomorrow morning at 10.30am.
It is absolutely soul destroying. I was told by many people before I started this to expect some waiting but I never expected this much waiting! Two full days of it.....and it's not over yet. What's the betting that we turn up tomorrow, hang about all morning, go for lunch and then the defendant pleads guilty in the afternoon and we get sent home again?
It's another world in that court. Five minutes means half an hour and half an hour means a morning.
No-one arrives at court before 10.30am, lunch is 1pm - 2.15pm and they finish for the day at 4pm.....and so much wasted time in between.
It also appears to be the case that the barristers do everything in their power to get the defendant to plead guilty therefore eliminating the need for a trial. They spend ages persuading and bargaining with them and finally it seems to work and they do. All very good for the barristers I suppose who still get their wages without having to go through the hassle of cross examining them in trial. Not so good for the poor sods on jury service who are wasting hours on end sitting in a waiting room.
To top it all off the snoring man was there again today, treating us all to the sound of his wonderful repertoire of farm animal noises.
Another week of this and I reckon I might be the one in the dock on a murder charge.