Washtenaw Judicial Attorney shares unique view of juries

By Frank Weir Legal News Kelly Roberts, Washtenaw County Judge Donald Shelton's judicial attorney, has a view of juries and jurors like no other and she has some advice for trial attorneys. ''There's always a definite point where a jury starts to bond and to care about the case,'' she said. ''When they first are chosen, some are not very happy about that.'' But as the case begins, everyone on a jury gets involved, Roberts said, and realize, ''Ok, this is serious.'' She notes that juries appreciate brevity and strongly dislike it when attorneys are discourteous to each other. ''They tend to get the issues more quickly than attorneys may think. They truly are paying attention and working hard so I think it is best if attorneys are brief and try not to repeat questions too much.'' And video depositions are high on most jurors' hate lists, she said, along with a reading of a deposition in court. ''Live witnesses testifying would be much briefer and hold a jury's interest better.'' Criminal cases are stressful for juries because they are "exposed to behaviors that are very foreign to them I think, and it is a highly stressful experience.'' She notes that it is not at all uncommon for jurors in a criminal case to break into tears after rendering a verdict. But after the experience has ended, Roberts believes most jurors are glad they had the opportunity. ''Each juror has an individual mind set and the entire process is far more complicated than what you will see in a media report which tends to focus on whether a defendant was convicted or acquitted." She added that media coverage seldom explains why jurors are not allowed to hear or see certain information which further complicates and confuses the general public. And news stories do not explain the overall importance of the rules of evidence in a democracy, she notes. Roberts attended the University of Michigan as an undergrad and the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law graduating in 2003. She practiced criminal law with Tom Moors for three years, then assumed her current position in 2007. And of private practice? She admits she ''misses the clients. ''I still get thank you notes and I really miss helping people since that's part of why I pursued a legal career in the first place. I love the idea of helping others.'' And just what does a judicial attorney do? ''I prepare the judge's dockets every week making sure the judge knows what motions are coming up, that he has the briefs for them, everything he needs to take the bench. ''I schedule and conduct settlement conferences and I tell the litigants' attorneys the judge's views on a matter and how he would likely rule.'' Roberts also researches specific legal questions and drafts opinions, tracking cases to make sure they are completed expeditiously. Single, Roberts lives in Ypsilanti Township and owns two German shepherds named Jack and Kaiser, who figure prominently in Roberts' Facebook postings, she noted. Published: Thu, Jan 5, 2012

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