Free Proposed Voir Dire - District Court of Arizona - Arizona

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RICHARD J. HARRIS LAW OFFICES, P.C .
4445 E. HOLMES AVE., SUITE 106 MESA, AZ 85206 (480) 854-3500 [email protected]

Richard J. Harris ­ #013859 Attorney for Plaintiff IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA Matthew Shaffer, Plaintiff, v. State of Arizona Citizens Clean Election Commission; Colleen Connor and Chad Jacobs; husband and wife; and Jessica Funkhouser and Lindy Funkouser, husband and wife; John Does I-X; Jane Does I-X Defendants. Pursuant to the court's pre-trial scheduling order, Plaintiff hereby submits his proposed Voir Dire questions for the court. 1. 2. 3. Have you ever been sued? If so please describe the circumstances. Have you ever sued anyone? If so please describe the circumstances. One of the issues in this case involves the alleged violation of Mr. Shaffer's rights as an employee of the State, including rights which employees in the private sector do not have. Do you have any opinions regarding the fact that state employees have rights that other employees do not have? a. 4. What are they? CV03 2344 PHX FJM PLAINTIFF'S PROPOSED VOIR DIRE

Do you think there may be times when it is right to break the law in order to do what was morally right or fair? a. Under what circumstances? Document 80 Filed 08/26/2005 Page 1 of 5

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R IC H A R D J. H AR RIS L A W O FFICES , P . C .

5.

Is there anyone here who thinks it is wrong for government employers to terminate their employees without any reason? Why or why not?

6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.

Would you consider yourself someone who works well with numbers or not? Do you work or have you ever worked in finance, bookkeeping or accounting? Does anyone here hold the opinion that government employees are underpaid or overpaid? Do you have your taxes prepared by an accountant? Do you know what the three branches of government in Arizona are? Do you believe that the First Amendment has gone too far in protecting the wrong kind of speech (e.g. flag burning), or that it does not go far enough? a. b. What kinds of things should not get as much protection? what kinds of things should get more protection?

12.

Have you ever been quoted in the news? a. Did the news get it right?

13.

Do you believe whistleblowers (those who report government misconduct) are good for society? Why or why not?

14.

During the Watergate scandal there was a secret source feeding information to the media about the Nixon administration. He was known only as "Deep Throat." a. b. What do you think of a government whistleblower not publicly identifying himself. Do you think he did the right thing?

15.

My client, Mr. Shaffer is a single parent. He has had custody of his daughter since his divorce. Do any of you have any opinions about divorced people or single parents? a. What are your opinions?

16.

Have you ever been falsely accused of wrongdoing by someone in authority over you? a. b. Tell me about that experience How did you respond

17.

Have you ever been told you were doing something wrong (either rightly or wrongly so) by Document 80 2 Filed 08/26/2005 Page 2 of 5

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a subordinate or co-worker? a. 18. How did you respond

Other than in a court of law, have you ever been in a hearing, arbitration, mediation or dispute resolution proceeding of any kind? a. b. c. d. What was it about What was your role How did it work for you or the parties involved? Based on your experience what is your opinion about the fairness of hearings in general?

19.

Have you ever participated in a government process that was a waste of your time? Please describe for me the circumstances and how you felt about the situation.

20.

One of the issues in this case is Mr. Shaffer's right to have been given a meaningful name clearing hearing following certain allegedly damaging statements which a defendant made about him. You may hear evidence that after his termination from the CCEC he spoke at a public meeting and voiced his outrage at the statements which were made. Is anyone predisposed into thinking that he's had his chance to say his side? If so, would you still feel predisposed if you were instructed that he was entitled to have a meaningful name clearing hearing?

21.

Have you ever witnessed someone at work doing something you thought was illegal? If so, what did you do about it?

22.

Have you ever reported something that you thought your employer was doing that was wrong. a. b. Why or why not? What happened?

23.

Having heard the answers of other jurors to the questions asked, have any of your opinions changed?

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24.

Have you ever felt that someone did something to damage your reputation? What was it and how did you react?

25. 26.

How important is your reputation at work? You may hear evidence about radio talk shows in this case. Do you ever listen to talk radio? a. Who do you listen to?

27.

You will hear evidence in this case about the 2002 governor's race. Do any of you have strong opinions regarding that election? a. b. c. Regarding Janet Napolitano? Regarding Matt Salmon? Regarding Betsy Bayless?

28.

How many of you have heard of the Citizen's Clean Election Commission? a. b. What do you know about it? Would you say that the commission favors one party over another?

29.

The CCEC administers the law which pays for people to run for office using the state's money instead of their own money. a. b. Do you have feelings in favor of public election funding? Do you have feelings against public election funding?

30.

If the evidence in this case were to support a conclusion that Mr. Shaffer's damages were as much as a million dollars, would you be able to enter an award that large in Mr. Shaffer's favor?

31.

Do you believe the court and juries in particular serve a legitimate purpose in letting the world know what the average person will not put up with?

32.

This case is likely to have some media attention. Do any of you have friends or relations in the media?

33.

What question do you think should have been asked of the jury pool but was not today?

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Shaffer\pleadings\Voir Dire

SUBM ITTED this August 26, 2005 R ICHARD J. H ARRIS L AW O FFICES, P.C.

By: s/Richard J. Harris Richard J. Harris 4445 E. Holmes Ave., Suite 106 Mesa, AZ 85206 Copy of the foregoing electronically transmitted via the U.S. District Court's Electronic Case Filing System this August 26, 2005 and to: Jay Zweig Melissa Berrens Gallagher & Kennedy 2575 E. Camelback Rd. Phoenix, AZ 85016-9225 Attorney for Defendants

s/Richard J. Harris

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