It's not that the jury room in Courtroom 7 at the Duval County Courthouse was dirty. Just a little disheveled, that's all.

Peeling paint. Clutter. Bland. Uninviting.

Not the kind of place Circuit Judge Virginia Norton wanted jurors cooped up in when she begins presiding over the felony courtroom Jan. 3.

So Norton spent a quiet week at the courthouse fixing up the jury room, which doubles as a break room for court staff.

"In all honesty, it looked a little depressing," Norton said. "It just needed to be kind of dressed up for company."

Budgets being what they are these days, Norton's renovations have cost the taxpayers next to nothing. She found an old can of cream-colored paint in the courthouse, which court maintenance workers used to cover the walls.

'Nicest jury room in the courthouse'

Everything else, she did herself. She bought some rugs at Kmart, brought in some wildlife prints from home to hang on the wall and put a peace lily in the corner. The plant was a gift from her cousin when Norton became a judge two years ago.

An old bookcase of Norton's will be used to organize some of the clutter.

"The way I look at it is we have citizens coming in here and they're giving of their time and we want to make it as nice as possible," Norton said.

Thursday, as she worked on the room, several court bailiffs stopped by before heading out for the holiday.

"This is going to be the nicest jury room in the courthouse," one remarked.

Norton, who has been in family court, is one of four judges who will move to the felony bench in Duval County next month.

Norton is replacing Circuit Judge Charles Arnold, who will head a special division designed to manage a glut of pending tobacco lawsuits.

Additionally, newly elected judge Mark Hulsey will replace Circuit Judge Mark Mahon, who is returning to juvenile court; Circuit Judge Thomas Beverly will leave juvenile to replace Circuit Judge David Gooding, who is returning to juvenile; and Circuit Judge Brad Stetson is returning to felony from family court to replace Circuit Judge L. Page Haddock, who is moving to civil.

paul.pinkham@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4107

http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2010-12-27/story/jacksonville-ju...