What Set Off Detector?

Per my summons, I appeared at the Ingham County Circuit Court, 313 W Kalamazoo Street in downtown Lansing yesterday morning for jury duty service.

The line was long on the north side of the building to get through security, so I walked around the back to the south entrance where there was no line - yay!  Until my purse went through on the belt.  I knew I'd already taken out my knife, so I couldn't figure out what was setting off the detector.  Twice more through and 'we' found the 2" chisel ('shiv', if you must) that I'd put in there a couple years ago.  I think I got in a cigar box full of keys at an estate sale and thought it might be useful to get myself out of a jam at some point. Apparently, it was a menace.  If you'd like it, I would guess it's still sitting on the ledge outside the south entrance of the courthouse.

OK, good to go, right? Not so fast.  The security guard still isn't liking some 'big chunk of metal' he keeps seeing on his screen.

Of course my purse is stuffed with newspapers, a book, banana, apple and trail mix (you would not want me deciding your fate when I'm hungry).  I haul all that stuff out.  He puts it through again.

I grab my purse and start dumping it out on the belt as the guard is saying, "Ma'am please don't, don't dump out your....", sigh.

Hmmm....maybe it's something in the little makeup bag I carry in my purse?  Scan that - bingo.  That would be the cute little owl-mirror a friend gave me years ago, which has never set off a scanner before.

There was a line at that entrance, too, by the time I was released. My apologies to those who were delayed.

We waited for four hours before finding out that the defendant opted to cop a plea deal. The judge said had he not, it likely would have been a four week trial.