As foreman, Kerry wins praise from fellow jurors

By Jonathan Saltzman, Globe Staff  |  November 23, 2005

Cynthia Lovell, a registered Republican, voted for President Bush a year ago, but during 90 minutes behind closed doors with his rival, Senator John F. Kerry, yesterday, she had to admit he was a smart, down-to-earth guy.

Joe Wesolaski, who works for a brokerage firm, declined to say how he voted but emerged from the same closed-door session praising Kerry as a natural leader who was eager to hear everyone's point of view.

Kerry the presidential candidate may have been a loser. But Kerry the jury foreman appeared to be a winner.

Massachusetts' junior senator led a Suffolk Superior Court jury that rejected a claim by two friends who sued a city worker for personal injuries they said stemmed from a car collision in August 2000 on Park Drive. The case lasted only two days, but it didn't take long for Kerry to win over his fellow jurors.

''I just found him to be a knowledgeable, normal person," said Lovell, a Charlestown nurse. ''He kept us focused. He wanted us all to have our own say."

Wesolaski said Kerry went around the table making sure his 11 fellow jurors felt they had an opportunity to air their opinions.

During breaks, Wesolaski and the senator discussed their mutual passion for bicycling. Wesolaski said he gave Kerry his phone number so they can arrange a bike ride.

As the jurors left the courtroom after the verdict, Kerry could be overhead promising Wesolaski he would call him.

''It was great, really a positive experience," Wesolaski said. ''I hope to hear from him."

Kerry, the only juror wearing a suit and tie, declined to discuss the case but told reporters afterward he was as surprised as anyone when no lawyer on either side sought to excuse him. He said he has been called for jury duty twice and got bounced both times because, he suspected, he had been a Middlesex County prosecutor in the 1970s.

The Democratic presidential candidate said he was delighted to participate in the trial, which had begun Monday.

''I enjoyed it," he said as he and a handful of jurors gathered for an impromptu news conference inside the courtroom at Suffolk Superior Court. ''It was very interesting and very instructive. Every citizen should do it."

Lovell said she sensed that Kerry wanted to keep a low profile during deliberations, but one of the jurors promptly suggested he be elected foreman because of his experience in the limelight and skills as a public speaker. Kerry agreed to do it and began discussing the evidence.

Lovell was so impressed by the senator that she said she regrets voting for Bush.

Kerry is one of several notable Massachusetts public officials to be called for jury service in recent months. In January, US Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer was called for jury duty in Marlborough. In July, Mayor Thomas M. Menino of Boston was summoned to Suffolk Superior Court. Both were excused.

But none of the lawyers in this case objected to Kerry being on the jury.

Glenn Fortier represented the plaintiffs, John Duarte and Taneiko Smith, who said they suffered strains and bruises in the accident with a car driven by the headmaster of Boston's Health Careers Academy. Two city lawyers attorneys defended Albert Holland, who allegedly passed their van on the right and collided with it.

Fortier said he was stunned to see Kerry sitting in the pool of perspective jurors Monday, but had no qualms about him serving. ''I think he's a very intelligent man, and I've had respect for everything he's accomplished," said Fortier, who voted for Bush.

Not everyone was happy with Kerry's presence on the jury, though. As the jury deliberated, Duarte, a 45-year-old Boston real estate manager, said that he was uneasy about a federal employee -- not to mention a US senator -- serving on a jury in which the defendant was a city worker. ''It's just too close together," said Duarte, who voted for Kerry.

When the jury returned moments later with a verdict that Kerry delivered in a firm voice, Duarte said his instincts had been right.

''I just think the city and state go hand in hand," he said, shaking his head. ''I don't think he should have gone on the jury."

Kerry reports for jury duty: Courtroom service a first for the senator

By Dave Wedge
Wednesday, November 23, 2005 - Updated: 01:00 AM EST

Sen. John F. Kerry has testified in some of the nation’s most hallowed halls of justice and sat in many Bay State courtrooms as a prosecutor but he’d never been on a jury – until this week.

Judge Margaret Hinkle raised eyebrows when she picked the Massachusetts senator to be on a Suffolk Superior Court jury Monday in a lawsuit brought by two people against the city of Boston for a car wreck involving a school principal.

“I was a little surprised,” Kerry said yesterday of being selected. He said he has been to the Suffolk courthouse for jury duty “a couple of times through the years” but was excused each time.

“I get called like everybody else and I show up,” Kerry said. Of the experience, he said: “I enjoyed it. It was very, very interesting and very instructive. We had a great jury, some great discussion. Every citizen should want to have the opportunity to do it.”

Kerry was named foreman of the jury, which found the city negligent for the 1999 crash but didn’t award John Duarte and Taneika Smith any money for their injuries. Duarte and Smith, who racked more than $7,000 in medical bills, were suing the city for pain and suffering.

Duarte, a 45-year-old property manager, said he, too, was surprised Kerry was put on his case.

“He’s plugged in with the city and the state so I don’t think they should have let him on it,” he said.

Despite the verdict, he had no hard feelings. “I like Kerry. I voted for him,” Duarte said.

Neither the city’s lawyer nor the attorney for Smith and Duarte, Glenn Fortier, opposed Kerry’s selection.

“I thought he’d be a good juror,” Fortier said. “He’s intelligent. He didn’t seem to be a distraction.”

Fellow juror Joe Wesolaski, 30, of the Back Bay shared a cup of coffee with Kerry during a break in the two-day trial and described him as “very nice” and “inquisitive.” The pair discussed their mutual love of cycling and the Tour de France and made plans to go riding together, Wesolaski said.