Inside PBS Blog

Justice just got a lot more interesting, thanks to Deliberations, a blog that sheds a light on the often secretive world of juries and jury selection.

Anne Reed, a trial lawyer and jury consultant in Milwaukee, Wisc., launched the blog a year ago with what she calls "a timid little post about the Scooter Libby trial, just to see what a blog might look like."

Since then, Deliberations has become an online meeting ground, both for lawyers seeking new jury selection strategies and for regular folks interested in a peek behind the curtain at the often messy process of American justice.

One section of Deliberations features a gallery of art done by actual jurors while on jury duty. Poring over sketches of restaurant scenes and Gothic arches, it's hard to know whether to admire the artistic talents of ordinary jurors or to pity the defendant whose fate rests in the hands of some guy doodling in a sketch pad.

Some of the pictures aren't pretty. One juror on a civil trial in Cook County Illinois sketched mini-portraits of his fellow jurors, dividing them into categories such as Sympathetic, Clueless, Close-minded, and Seemingly Ignorant of the Trial They Just Witnessed.

Deliberations also features a growing library of juror questionnaires drawn from actual cases. Lawyers visit the online library to brainstorm their own jury question lists.

But you don't have to be a lawyer to enjoy the wacky questions potential jurors are being asked these days. Attorneys in an upcoming federal corruption case in Orange County, Calif., want to know answers to questions such as: How do you feel about vulgar language? Should wives dump husbands who cheat on them? Which statement do you agree with more: Birds of a feather flock together, or Opposites attract?"

The verdict on the Deliberations blog: Guilty of being downright fascinating.