Ashley Banfield (0:00)

Foreign. Hi, everyone, it's Ashley Banfield and this is Drop Dead Serious. I had to do this bonus episode because I just got my hands on the jury questionnaire in the Karen Reed trial. I'm recording this on Monday night, very late at night on the 31st of March. You, you might be listening to this afterwards. And they may have already started picking the jury, but I could not believe the questions. I have been to this rodeo a lot. I have seen so many jury questionnaires in my many decades, I hate to say four decades almost, of doing this kind of work, but this really, really surprised me. And then I thought through it, and maybe not, maybe I shouldn't be surprised, but I'm going to read all the questions for you. So, like, for anybody who gets pooled, and then, you know, they have to fill out these questionnaires before they even get a shot at voir dire. Right. If you've ever done jury duty, it's super boring. You go and you sit and you wait, and then you have to fill these questionnaires out. And then if you get moved into a room and funneled into the courtroom and get questioned, you have to be honest and you're under oath. And. And in this case, this pool of jurors is going to be asked 38 questions on a questionnaire. It's long, it's like two, three. I got three full pages in front of me. And the questions are super pointed and they cover the gamut of everything that we've been through together when it comes to Karen Reid. So normally, like, you know, in a high profile case, you'll be asked, oh, have you seen media on this? And what kind of media have you consumed? And have you formed an opinion? But this questionnaire has so many more areas that it covers. It does the usual, like, can you be fair and impartial? And a couple of pro forma boilerplate kind of questions. And it asks if you've already made up your mind about the case that you know is in front of you, but it talks about how the media is going to be really big going forward in this case. Is that going to be a problem for you? Not to mention what you might have already consumed. Okay, that's not what they're asking at this point. They're asking about big klieg lights on the Karen Reed case. And if that is going to present a problem for you, the juror, you know, there's going to be cameras in the courtroom, there are going to be reporters everywhere, and, you know, people are going to Try to get interviews with you at some point. That was an interesting question. It also asks about privacy issues, like, do you have issues about privacy? First thing that comes to my mind is like, are you in witness protection? That's a big privacy issue. But there could be all sorts of issues. Right? Let's say you're a domestic violence victim and you cannot have this kind of publicity you keep under the radar. That would be something that you would cross off in this questionnaire. It also talks about the kind of media that you have consumed. This is the big one I expected. But when I saw the list of all the different media that they ask you about if you're a potential juror, I was gobsmacked. Let me just, let me see. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. There's like, it's like almost a dozen, a dozen different sources of media. I'll go over them all in a second. It won't take a minute when I get there. It's going to take more than a minute though. When I read all the different sources that you may have consumed. Karen Reed News. And it's not just the usual suspects. Tv, radio, blogs. There's a lot more then, this is big. I didn't expect this one, but I should have. It talks about who you are as a juror with relationship to police. How do you feel about cops? Now, I have seen on jury questionnaires before, would you believe the testimony of a police officer if you see him in uniform or her in uniform, just because that's a law enforcement officer and we respect them and if they're sitting up there on the stand in uniform, are you just generally going to believe them no matter what? I've seen that before. But this time they're asking if you've belonged to, like groups that either support or oppose law enforcement. So think about it. Have you been a member of Black Lives Matter? Have you gone to Black Lives Matter protests? Have you been pro police and gone to pro police protests? And have you maybe worn the Blue Lives Matter flag? Or do you fly a Blue Lives Matter flag? Literally? You could be on either end of the fence when it comes to cops. Right. I myself, I fill in on a show called On Patrol Live, and it is a show about policing. I would have to answer very, very positively about, I do a show that follows police. It's what I do for a living. You know, I'm not anti police. And they may say, you don't work, you don't work for me. I, I, I, I don't, I don't want you on this jury if you're Karen Reed. I think the state would love me on that jury if I do a pro police show. But anyway, so then it goes on and it covers drinking and driving. So there's another whole area that they want to know about these jurors. Where are you when it comes to drinking and driving? Have you ever been, like, supportive of Mothers Against Drunk Driving? Have you ever been subject of a dui? Ever been involved, that kind of thing? And then it goes even further. I'm telling you, the ground that this questionnaire covers, I don't know how they're going to pick a jury, honestly. Talks about domestic violence. Ever been, you know, abused? Ever been involved in any kind of case? Family, friends, how do you feel about domestic violence? That kind of thing. And then it goes again, like I told you before, about the. The subject of how much media, you know, have you consumed. That's a whole separate area, too. So without further ado, let me read you the questions as though you are the juror. This is what these people in the morning are going to be having to look at. They're going to have this handed to them. Okay? Juror number blank. Do not include your name. Today's date. That will be April 1st. April Fool's Day. And none of this is in April Fools, by the way. Question number one. It is alleged that on January 29, 2022, while intoxicated and operating her motor vehicle in Canton, Massachusetts, the defendant, Karen Reed, killed her boyfriend, John O'Keefe, an off duty Boston police officer. Is there anything about the description of the case, the charges, or that the victim was an off duty police officer that causes you to believe that you cannot be fair and impartial in this case? It's a long question. You get the option of yes, no, or not sure. And by the way, it doesn't say off the top. You know, check. Use a check mark, use an X. Doesn't say anything like that. Just use your best judgment. Question 2. Have you already started to make up your mind about this case? Yes. No, not sure. Question 3. Do you have opinions regarding previous experiences as a juror, the fairness of the jury system or criminal justice system in our country that would impair your ability to be fair and partial to both the Commonwealth and to the defendant? Yes, no or not sure? Question number four. Do you have any religious or philosophical beliefs that would make it difficult for you to follow the law and come to a verdict in this case? Yes. No, not sure. Question 5. This case is expected to garner a significant amount of media attention. Is there anything about the high profile nature of this case that would prevent you from serving as a fair and impartial juror? Again, three choices. Yes. No, not sure. Number six, do you, any family members or close friends, reside or conduct regular business in Canton, Massachusetts? That's kind of interesting because, like, this is a jury of your peers pulled from the county. Right. So I would imagine a lot of people will probably say yes. And why would that be a problem? Other than it will lead to more voirdir questions like, okay, while you've been living in Canton, have you ever had encounters with the police? Good or bad? Possibly. Number seven, if the testimony were in conflict, would you tend to believe the testimony of a police officer more than any other witness simply because the witness is a police officer? Yes. No. Not sure. That question I've seen a lot, you know, that's kind of a standard boilerplate, like I said. So that doesn't surprise me that one. Okay. Number eight. Conversely, would you tend to, and this is in boldface, disbelieve a police officer simply because the witness is a police officer? Let me tell you something. In all my many years, that was not typical. That kind of question wasn't typical. The typical question was, it's a cop. It's a position of authority. Do you tend to believe them just because that's what they are? But now since Black Lives Matter and the anti policing movement of the last five years, this has got to go on this jury form, you know, kind of a for or against. All right. Number nine, do you believe law enforcement officers are generally fair and accurate in their investigations? Yes. No. Not sure. Number 10, do you have any strong personal beliefs or have you been exposed to any strong personal beliefs from friends and relatives about law enforcement officers, prosecutors or the government? Yes. No, not sure. It keeps going. I mean, man, there's a lot of questions about your thoughts about police. Number 11, have you ever been involved in a group, community or individual activity showing support in boldface for law enforcement in or outside your own community? Yes. No. Not sure. And it continues. I God, I cannot believe, like how many questions about what you think about police? Number 12, have you ever been involved in a group, community or individual activity that was bold face, critical of the police or law enforcement in or outside your own community? And yes, there is more. Number 13, have you or someone close to you ever had education, training or work experience in any of the following fields, law enforcement, military, alcohol, slash, drug abuse, comma, domestic violence? Yes. No, Not Sure. Okay, so I think we're moving on now as we get to question 14. That was a lot. It was like half a page. Yeah, it was half a page of police based questions. But number 14 moves on. Do you have any strong personal beliefs or have you been exposed to any strong personal beliefs from friends and relatives about operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol? Yes. No, not sure. And again, this is just from friends and relatives, so there's more. Number 15, have you ever been involved in a group, organization, participated in a march, demonstration campaign, or donated money on behalf of an organization or cause that was against driving under the influence of alcohol, such as sadd, that's Students Against Drunk Driving or madd, that's Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Choices again are yes, no, or not sure. Number 16, still with the theme here. Has anyone close to you ever been involved in an incident involving drinking and driving? If so, would that experience prevent you from being a fair and impartial juror in this case? Oh my gosh, let me think about that. You gotta think this through, folks. I mean, do you know anybody, you know who's been involved in an incident involving drinking and driving? So that means a drinker who drove or somebody who was affected by a drinker who drove. I mean, I could listen lots in my background. Now don't forget, I'm of a different generation. So there was a long time when I was a teenager and a 20 something where drinking and driving was not what it is today. Today kids are pretty darn good when it comes to drinking and driving and having like sober drivers and designated drivers, but back in the day, not so much. So I have had more experience perhaps at my age. Okay, so we're at question six. 17. Have you or has anyone close to you been involved in or witnessed a motor vehicle crash? Well, dang, man. Man, oh man. In real life maybe there'll be lots of people who haven't, but I think more people who have and definitely people who've seen it on videos because that's all my kids see in their stream. That's it just crashes, constant crashes. Number 18, is there anything about crash reconstruction testimony that would make it difficult for you to be fair or impartial in this case? This is a big old deal. There's been so many motions prior to trial, pre trial motions about crash reconstruction, paying for that kind of research. Feds who have paid for it accusations, the defense has paid for it accusations. Defense wasn't honest about paying for it, which is not true. So this is an interesting question. I wonder how many people actually know about crash Reconstruction testimony. Number 19. Have you or any family members or close friends have been involved in a domestic violence relationship that featured physical, mental and or verbal abuse? Yes. No, not sure that one is interesting. It is on a lot of forms, but again, it would have to pertain to the trial. I have seen that before. Number 20, have you ever been a victim of a violent crime? Yes. No. Not sure that I have seen a lot on questionnaires. Number 21. During trial, you will hear testimony about medical treatment, death and review graphic autopsy photographs. Will that affect your ability to participate and be fair and impartial? Be a fair and impartial juror. Okay, so this is important. The photographs of John O'Keeffe show. You know, we've seen it on television. The scratches, those very deep scratches all the way up and down his arm. But we haven't seen a lot of other autopsy photos of John O'Keefe. And let me tell you something. Depending on the trial that you sit for as a juror, those can be life altering, right? I mean, some people can never ever shake what they see if they are jurors who have to look at autopsy photos and of grisly murders. It's brutal. Child murders. It is the worst. My sister would. Would be precluded from sitting on this jury because my sister can't see or talk about blood. She is so squeamish. She almost has like a vasovagal reaction when people start talking about blood and guts and gore. And if you don't know what a vasovagal reaction. I know it because I've had it. I'm a little squeamish. Not so bad, but a little squeamish. I don't like oppressive, gross, gory movies. I start to faint in those movies because I get very upset and my blood vessels constrict and I don't get enough blood flow and boom, out I go. And my sister has fainted at just the mere conversation involving. Involving blood. She got a bloody nose on a plane and she fainted in the bathroom when she went to go and treat herself and deal with it. So she would have to say, I can't do this. I. I won't be able to sit through this trial, which is amazing. I don't think she's ever actually been called for jury duty. I'd have to ask her. She lives up in Vancouver, Canada, but I don't know that she's ever been asked. Okay, number 22. Do you believe Karen Reed should have to prove her innocence. It's a great question and it's an important question because a lot of jurors think that it's even Steven. Okay, you've had your side prosecution, how about you defense prove it. That's not what the defense has to do. The defense doesn't have to prove anything ever. In any case, the prosecution has the complete burden. That's why sometimes defendants don't even put on a case because they don't want to ruin a good thing. If the prosecution didn't meet the burden, let them hang themselves. Right. But it's important for jurors to know that if the defendant doesn't testify, do you think she's probably guilty or hiding something? Another good question. Because you do not have to testify. And in fact, if you are a defendant, you probably shouldn't. There are certain cases where it's like dang brother or sister, you gotta get up there and explain yourself. Right? But unless you are good and your lawyer thinks you can take the heat because cross exam is gonna be a bitch. Probably better idea not to. But jurors need to know, just because you don't doesn't mean you're guilty. Just because you exercise your right, your fifth amendment right against self incrimination does not make you a guilty person. You have the right to remain silent, not just at arrest, during trial too. And most people, you need to use it. The majority of people. Okay, number 24. Do you know or recognize anyone you have seen today in the courthouse or in the jury pool? That's interesting. If you know the lawyers, I usually see this question as do you know any of the counsel on the case? Do you recognize the judge or any of the. Anybody that you see in this courtroom as a potential witness? Because family members you know of defendants or of victims are often in court. Number 25, would your answer or answers to any of the above questions be embarrassing or damaging if disclosed publicly or would disclosure infringe on your privacy? We talked about that at the top, right? Like what if you're in witness protection? Yeah, like this is not good for me. And yeah, what if you're a domestic violence victim and you are trying to keep a low profile from an abusive spouse? There could be all sorts of other reasons where you don't want to be disclosing this kind of information. Number 26, do you have any concerns about your personal privacy due to the presence of video cameras in the courtroom and or the highly publicized nature of this case? Because brothers and sisters on the jury, it's going to be big. There will be a lot of coverage. Okay, so those are the first two pages, but now I'm on the third page. And interestingly enough, it's like an addendum. It is like starting from scratch again at the top juror number and today's date. I'm trying to think of maybe if one is the state and one is the defense. I haven't looked it over with that lens, but so number one, and this is a biggie, I think one of the biggest. Do you have any knowledge of this case gained from any source? Yes or no? There's no option for not sure, just yes or no. And then number two, right under it, what is your source of knowledge? It's funny that it doesn't say what is your source of knowledge of this case? Because if I'm a juror and I see what is your source of knowledge and I see the list below me, I'm like, well, like general knowledge. Like, what do I do every day to be an informed citizen? But I assume that this means of this case, like, if you answered yes to number one, number two, but it's not very clear, I would have been more clear. But what do I know? So here's the list of what is your source of knowledge. And you have a little box to check off, right? Besides each one of these, starting with television, then radio, newspapers, magazines, Internet, Twitter, X. And then it says social media, which is weird because Internet or Twitter is part of social media, but it lists out Twitter on its own. And then there's a box beside social media and a subcategory which I think you're supposed to check off Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or other. Then it keeps going. The next box is podcasts. Hello, Then family, then friends. Then. This is weird observations in the community. I mean, have you seen the free Karen Reed circus outside the courtroom and protests and they're all wearing pink hats and they have placards. And I mean, it is big, right? So you may have driven through that, you may have seen this, then this one. I love overheard discussions. I don't know that I've seen that on a jury form before. Like, what is your source of knowledge on this case? Overheard discussions. And then the last box is just other. There could be other ways that you came across this. Oh, my kid did a project or my. My daughter is in college and wrote this for her thesis. I mean, there could be other ways that you learned about the Karen Reed case. And then there's a big long line for you to fill in what the other is. Then number three. And again, we're on the third page, but it starts again from question one and two and now three. What are the details of the case that you are able to recall? And this is not. Yes. No, not sure. This is like two full long lines of you. You got to write it out in long form. What. What details do you know about this case? I. I don't know that two lines is going to be enough for a lot of these jurors. Right. Well, what don't I know? You know, how are you going to write out the whole story of the Karen Reed? Especially if you. If you saw the Netflix series, by the way. Yeah, I guess Netflix would count for television streaming, but yeah, if you saw the Netflix series on Karen Reed, two lines is just. That's not going to be enough. Number four, are you aware of any specific impact this criminal allegation has had on your community? Wow, that's big. Again, if you saw the documentary, I mean, you'd be like, well, yeah, there was like, the lead investigator got fired. Yeah, my community's torn apart, you know, pro police, anti police, you know, pro Karen Reid, anti police, you know, and. And the pro cops. So that would be another long one. And there's only one line, one long line to answer in longhand. Number five, what is your primary source of news and information? That's just one short line that you have to write out. Number six, how often do you read print or online? Newspapers, magazines, blogs, and what sources? And again, fill these out in long form. These are not. Yes. No, not sure. Number seven, how often are you exposed to news from radio, television, podcasts, or social media and what sources? Getting kind of repetitive, but okay, big long line for you to answer. Number eight, what is your familiarity with the case prior to today? Which is weird because I'm looking up at question one. Do you have any knowledge of this case gained from any source? Yes or no. And then you list out all the places where you, you know, heard about it. But. Okay, it's kind of weird, I guess you get two lines. Again, it's not a lot. It's only two lines to answer this. But anybody who's big on parent Reid, I don't know how you're going to fit it in there. Number nine, have you had discussions about this case prior to today? Look, that could be yes or no. It doesn't say yes or no. It just gives you a line to answer. Number 10, is there any reason you would be unable to follow an Instruction that during your jury service, you may not colon read any news or media accounts about this case, watch or listen to any media or news broadcasts or commentary about this case, discuss this case with anyone. Research, research. Or look this case up on the Internet, comma, or perform independent research. I would have to answer, yeah, there is a big reason this would be problematic for me. I am a true crime reporter. I have a true crime show. I'm a podcaster, I'm a writer about true crime. This is my bailiwick. So, no, I can't not go on the Internet. I can't not read newspapers, listen to television news every day. They'd strike me from this jury before I got past question one. But other people. Is there a reason, you know, let's see. If you don't work in the media, I could probably come up with a bunch if I thought it through. But I think we can all think it through on our own. There may be a reason why you have to keep abreast of the news. Maybe you're a lawyer. Maybe you need to know what's happening in upcoming cases of import in your community. Maybe you're a law enforcement officer and you need to keep abreast of news in your community. So you'd have to answer a lot of that. Funny, it never asked, are you a law enforcement officer? I did not see one question that says that, but I guess it says, are you involved? Okay, number 11, is there any reason you would be able to. You would be unable to follow an instruction that during your jury service, you may not read or view any social media articles, posts, videos, podcasts, or any other non traditional media platforms that may discuss this case. Okay, that's a really easy one, too. Maybe you're an influencer. Maybe you rely on social media to market your business and to know what your competition's up to. So you need to be on social media. And by the way, you don't control your feed, stuff's gonna pop up. Right? So maybe you'd have to answer, I can't not be on social media. It's my livelihood. I'm not sure that you could answer. I'm addicted. I don't think that would cut the mustard. I'm addicted to social media, therefore I cannot avoid it. I don't think the judge would. Would buy into that. But it's an interesting question, and I don't think I've seen that question before, actually. Number 12, and this is the final one, is there any reason that if you are inadvertently exposed to extrajudicial influence or media about this case that you would be unable to follow an instruction that you must report an exposure to a court officer. I don't know how you answer no, you know, or yes. I don't know how you'd answer yes. Like what? What reason would you ever give if you were picked and you ended up getting exposed to something that you couldn't possibly tell a court officer that you were exposed? But there it is, you know, all laid out in black and white. And don't mess up on voir dire, you know, because that is a problem. You. You could be in contempt of court if you don't answer honestly to this stuff. Here's what I just want to say about these questions. I covered OJ And OJ Was rightfully named the trial of the century back in 1995. And the questions were nothing like this, right? There was no social media back then. There was barely Internet. I mean, remember Katie Couric's famous line, what is Internet? They were. We were all just learning about it back then. So the exposure to media would have been books, newspapers, and TV news and radio. That probably would have been about it. But now you see how extensive we have to get with just the media exposure. And then there's Karen Reed. There are all these elements in this trial. Cops, drinking and driving, domestic abuse media. And I don't know how you're going to pick a jury. Like, there's. There is nobody who can go through this and answer perfectly. Someone, every person on this planet has a little bit of all of this or bits and pieces of all of this in their background. So then it just behooves these lawyers to be really, really good at reading body language and trying to get a feel in voir dire for. Okay, so you answered yes, you have been exposed to this case. Can you be fair and impartial? Those are the two magic words whenever it comes to picking a jury. Because, folks, I think we all know, with media in your hand now, right, like your media is in your hand at all times, you can't find a juror that has not learned anything about OJ or about Karen Reed or about Lori Valo, right? You just can't. So the questions are critical about what kind of person are you, based on what you've already heard and what you've consumed. You saw the Netflix. Okay? Do you think you could be fair and impartial in this courtroom and put Netflix aside and instead base your decisions on what we give you in this courtroom? And that alone. That's it if you are ever having a coffee, you know, or a water cooler conversation about jury selection or, you know, what's fair in, in a high profile case, that's what it comes down to. Yeah, you're probably going to be exposed or have been exposed to stuff about this case, but what kind of person are you? Can you be fair and impartial? I can't wait for this trial. And by the way, I'm going to be giving you loads and loads of updates and you know, lots of bonuses. Which is why I always say to you, please like subscribe and comment and do all these other things. Subscribing is really important because when I drop these bonus episodes, they are all over the map. Like, right. I don't schedule them. Like tonight I'm doing this after my show. I did not plan for it. I just got my hands on this jury questionnaire. So if you're not subscribed, you will not get these little magical nuggets of love because that's what they are. And I really love hearing your comments. Okay. I do. I tailor a lot of what I do based on my, my group, you, our little family here. I want to know what you think and I like to know what you want covered and what you have had enough of. And so these are really important. If you're watching on YouTube, comment below. Tell me like yes or no. Do you like me? Do you hate me? Do you like what we did? Do you hate what we did? I like the negative stuff too. Not the I hate your hair business, but the reasoned critique. I really do feed off of good critique and I do change things based on that. And I always like to end with something I think is really important. The truth. It's not just serious, it's drop dead serious.