So, there’s this technology company that’s about to sue the pants off of conservative cable-news network, Fox News. It’s like a match made in heaven, am I right? Anyway, the jury selection process for the trial is underway, and the judge seems to be pretty confident that he can wrap things up by…wait for it…the afternoon! Imagine that, a jury selection process that doesn’t drag on until nap time. Maybe the judge has some kind of secret weapon we don’t know about.
Out of the initial group of 82 potential jurors, 23 had the audacity to claim that they wouldn’t be biased. The other 59 will be individually questioned, and then the judge will decide if they are fit to be part of the jury. The lawyers for the plaintiff, Dominion Voting Systems, made it clear that they wouldn’t want any Mike Lindell supporters or Rudy Giuliani fans on the jury. I mean, who would want a fan club for those guys anyway?
The judge, like any good judge, wants to pick jurors who can be fair and impartial. He’s not looking for someone who thinks Mike Lindell is a saint or a sinner. And he doesn’t care about how people voted in the last presidential election. The judge is also trying to limit Dominion’s ability to weed out Fox News fanatics. Apparently, he thinks that some people watch Fox News because they feel like they have to watch the other side. Sure, Jan.
Fox News and Dominion each get to strike nine jurors from the pool, in addition to an unlimited number of strikes “for cause.” Basically, each side gets to weed out the whack-a-doodles. The jury consultants seem to think that the trial will attract a lot of drama, what with all the media attention and whatnot. But they’re confident that they can find a group of people who aren’t completely bonkers.
One lawyer and trial consultant thinks that Fox will want jurors who are impressed by tough-talking Tucker Carlson and who think people are too sensitive these days. Meanwhile, Dominion is trying to find jurors who have been wronged in some way and can relate to the company’s point of view. It’s like picking a kickball team in middle school all over again, except with more lawyers.
In the end, it all comes down to this – the judge is allowing Fox fanatics to be part of the jury, but Dominion is probably going to nix them anyway. And that makes sense, because if you’re a Tucker Carlson die-hard, you’re definitely not impartial. Former New York Times lawyer George Freeman thinks that anyone who watches Fox News around-the-clock should be kicked off the jury. The trial is going to be a doozy, folks. Buckle up.