Some people will do just about anything to get out of jury duty, even if it means going to jail.
In an ironic twist, a prospective juror in a marijuana possession trial in Texas was arrested Tuesday after police say they caught her smoking a joint outside the courthouse, KHOU-TV reported.
Lawyers had narrowed the jury pool to 20 people, including 49-year-old Cornelia Turner Mayo. When Mayo did not return from a 45-minute break called by Judge Sherman Ross, his first instinct was to file a bench warrant for the missing juror.
But before he could do so his bailiff received word from police saying Mayo was being booked on a charge of smoking marijuana outside the criminal courthouse.
"I've had prospective jurors get lost before, but it never occurred to me that they might be getting ready for a marijuana trial by, allegedly, smoking marijuana," Ross told the Houston Chronicle.
Mayo was booked on a charge of possession of marijuana and released from jail after posting bail. She will be arraigned next week in the courtroom across from Ross’.
Incidentally, she was not picked for the jury.
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