Juror No. 2386 had been sitting in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom for two days, waiting to be grilled by lawyers, when he let out a loud yawn.
"You yawned rather audibly there. As a matter of fact, it was to the point that it was contemptuous," said Superior Court Judge Craig Veals, who was presiding over jury selection for an attempted murder trial.
"I'm sorry, but I'm really bored," the juror replied.
"I'm sorry?" the judge responded, and the juror repeated his statement.
The judge called his attitude "lousy." "Your boredom just cost you $1,000�. I'm finding you in contempt," Veals said, according to an April 1 court transcript. "Are you quite so bored now?"
After the juror balked at paying the $1,000, Veals slashed the fine to $100, but not before the juror had spent up to two hours detained in a jury assembly room.
Ouch! Details here from the Los Angeles Times.