It was hot, loud, and close. I couldn’t even take a moment to think—think about how much I hated it here.

But the one thing that stuck in my mind, as we sat crammed together, the television blaring and the occasional announcements—“We’re down to five courts”—was the beautiful soprano voice that I heard in the lobby of the Criminal Courts Building.

Yes, I was doing my time, the entire month of August as a juror. I arrived each Tuesday and Thursday at 8:30 a.m. and each day, she was singi...