How Not to Avoid Jury Duty: Florida Women Curses Judge and Goes to Jail

On one level, Sarah E. Muller was successful. Muller, 23, did not want to serve on a jury at the Marion County Courthouse Monday. When County Judge R. James McCune Jr. refused to dismiss her, she called him a seven-letter word for an anus. She is now off the jury list and facing a potential six months in jail for contempt.

While Muller admits that “Sometimes I get upset and I say things,” she considers her outburst to be a matter of “freedom of speech.”

Indeed, she first repeated the curse word when McCune asked her to clarify — only later expressing deep remorse once charged with a second-degree misdemeanor for criminal contempt.

She was upset because she has very little money and a bad heart condition.
She tried to argue medical problems after getting into a line for people seeking to be excused. McCune denied it and asked her to sit down with the rest of the jury pool. Instead, she got back into line and this time claimed to be a racist. McCune denied her again — leading to her cursing.

Yet, at the hearing, she insisted “I did not mean to cause disrespect.” It is a bit of a hard sell. People generally do not greet each other with “Hey a**h***” as an expression of affection.

She now faces up to six months in prison and a $500 court fine.

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