神聖職責
去年九月,我第一次行使大國公民的神聖職責,如約應召到羅省高等刑事法庭做陪審員.
刑事法院保安嚴密,過了安檢, 大樓內有十部電梯,僅有六部可供普通人使用,電梯前人頭湧湧,刺青幫派朋友和西裝筆挺朋友同在。大家等候電梯,秩序井然.
早上八點,在陪審團的五樓大堂已經坐了三四百人,能有幸入坐的,條件一是要滿十八歲,二是要做了公民。
……
已經是接近午飯的時間,終於輪到我的問話,我的心情有點緊張,不想被選中,因為包公告訴我們,案件要審十天,時間太長了,我希望立刻甩身。但真真假假,瞞天過海不行. 我決定絕對誠實. 用流利的廣東音英文,鎮定回包公話:
包公: [ 陪審員113, 你能做到公正, 不偏不倚嗎?] (Juror 113, can you be fair and impartial?)
噹:[我不能。大人, 我恐怕對這三位年輕人不公正。] (I cannot, Your Honor, I am afraid I will be unfair to these 3 young men).
包公:[為什麼?] (Why?)
噹:[我不喜歡他們的面孔,須無過犯,面目可憎。] (I do not like their faces; they don’t look good to me).
包公:[為什麼?](Why?)
噹:[四十年前,我剛移民到美國,住BELL Garden,那個城市,時時有人搶劫銀行,警察有時抓住疑犯,有時讓疑犯逃脫,我看過那些疑犯,他們就像在坐的三位年輕人。] (40 years ago, I moved to America, lived in Bell Garden, robberies often took place in that city, police sometimes caught the suspects, sometime let them get away, I saw those suspects, they look exactly like these 3 young men).
包公: [ 謝謝你的誠實,你免除做陪審員.] (Thank you for your honesty. You are excused)
……
(塵噹 二零一二年二月於洛杉磯)