jury duty

[weary]

so i got a letter saying i have to report for jury duty. this time, i think i'll actually have to go. (i've gotten letters before, but they were after i'd moved away - like STATES away - so i of course go out of it by just providing proof of current non-residence.)

i don't think i'm looking forward to it or going begrudgingly...i'm just sort of, meh. honestly, the only thing i'm looking forward to about it is missing work. i suppose if i actually wind up on an interesting case that would be cool.

anyone have any good jury duty stories or tips to share?

[MetFanL]

I am CONSTANTLY getting jury duty -- both local and FEDERAL.. .For the Feds, you uhave to be on call for a month.

I've never served, though, b/c I usually mention that I know a lot of cops or I cry.

[weary]

sheesh met! why so many times i wonder? they must like you. ;)

i think i only know 1 cop, and don't know how well i can cry on queue...but it's worth a shot.

[mishl982]

I can point you to where it is specifically on my blog, but I wrote a whole long story about my experience.

I was the same way going in - I wasn't enthusiastic about it but I wasn't against it either. Just, meh. The only thing I didn't like was (and this may just be for my county) that you don't know if you actually have to report to court or not until the day before, so youcouldn't count on whether you actually had to miss work or not. Oh and that you had to be "on call" for two weeks. But you get paid for the days you end up going in :)

Definitely bring a book, mp3 player, homework, work work, wahtever you have to work on. You could be there forever. It also helped to have snacks handy because you can't always go to the cafeteria for food or drink.

I ended up getting called in and everytime the other jurors and I were in the back room (whenever the judge had to discuss stuff with the lawyers, which was often), one guy kept making paper origami. We were back there so often and for so long I think he made an origami thing for everyone in the room!

[wordsmith]

so i got a letter saying i have to report for jury duty. this time, i think i'll actually have to go. (i've gotten letters before, but they were after i'd moved away - like STATES away - so i of course go out of it by just providing proof of current non-residence.)

i don't think i'm looking forward to it or going begrudgingly...i'm just sort of, meh. honestly, the only thing i'm looking forward to about it is missing work. i suppose if i actually wind up on an interesting case that would be cool.

anyone have any good jury duty stories or tips to share?

I'd be into it.

I've never been called, but my mom gets called ALL the time. It's crazy.

Once, she got dismissed from participating, because she knew the arresting officer and had argued with him over a traffic ticket, so there was a conflict of interest.

Another time, she was part of a jury that was sequestered for about a week during a high profile rape/abduction trial.

[wordsmith]

I'm guessing that mentioning that I'm a journalist would get me out of a lot.

[coll214]

Before i moved, I used to get the notices all the time... but the day off from work would make it ok for me :). I could get a lot of reading in that day!The one time I actually served I didn't get called in to talk to the lawyers til like 4pm, which was tiring. Sadly a friend of mine just had to go last week and ran into a couple people we both know, they were not there for jury duty though!! LOL.

[SmilesSoSweet]

I was summons to jury duty when I was studying abroad in Italy. I rescheduled during my winter break. I got called to a trail, but never got called on the panel.

It was a criminal case - a robbery. The overall experience was interesting. But I only got paid $15 plus $0.15/mile ONE-way (my check totaled $15.45!) The waiting room where all potential jurors wait until they get called to a case was filled with books, magazines and puzzles. The staff there were really sarcastic too.

I then got summons almost exactly a year later. By that time I had already moved to a different County and I just had to mail them a copy of my driver's license with my current address.

I did get summoms here in Phoenix. I just had to call every day after 5pm. My group never got called in and that was it.

[WorkInProgress]

Never been called, never served.

When we lived overseas, my mom used to get called all the time by the state we were residents of, but she didn't have to go, of course.

[mishl982]

What? That's it!

I got $30 just for being there :)

[wordsmith]

My college roommate apparently was called up for jury duty via a letter sent to her parents' house, in another county from where we went to school, and her mom failed to send it on (not that she'd prob. have had to go). So there was a warrant out for her arrest, unbeknownst to her.

[weary]

My college roommate apparently was called up for jury duty via a letter sent to her parents' house, in another county from where we went to school, and her mom failed to send it on (not that she'd prob. have had to go). So there was a warrant out for her arrest, unbeknownst to her.

DAMN!!!

[MetFanL]

sheesh met! why so many times i wonder? they must like you. ;)

i think i only know 1 cop, and don't know how well i can cry on queue...but it's worth a shot.
Everytime I move or change my voter registration, I get called for jury duty. It's like it pops me back up the list.

I actually got called for this week, but b/c of where I work, they postponed it until June. We'll see what happens then.

[SmilesSoSweet]

The time I did serve, there was one elderly lady that got called up to the panel. The basic questions were asked. And she said that she had never gotten summons to jury duty until now.

The rest of the jurors in court room were just saying how lucky she was to basically go 60 years without having been called.

My grandma used to get summons all the time. I think she even got summons a couple of times after she died! :eek:

[Trillian42]

I only recieved notice once. I had to call in each morning for Sun-Thurs of one week to find out if I had to go in the next day. But my number was never called.

[PeakDream]

I served last year, it was a two days trail. I don't mind jury duty because it keeps the justice system somewhat balanced. I know one guy who was on a mob trail that went to court every Tuesday for seven months, talk about a pain in the ass. Fortunately, he believes in his civil duty and try to live up to his part. Also, if you served in a jury, you won't serve for the next six years (at least in NY).

[wordsmith]

I served last year, it was a two days trail. I don't mind jury duty because it keeps the justice system somewhat balanced. I know one guy who was on a mob trail that went to court every Tuesday for seven months, talk about a pain in the ass. Fortunately, he believes in his civil duty and try to live up to his part. Also, if you served in a jury, you won't serve for the next six years (at least in NY).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it's not like you have a choice, right? You can't just opt out if you DON'T happen to believe it's your civic duty.

[mishl982]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but it's not like you have a choice, right? You can't just opt out if you DON'T happen to believe it's your civic duty.
I kind of took it as he thought he would make the most out of the opportunity. Like, "Well I'm here anyways, I might as well do it well."

When I got summoned a part of me really did want to be called to be on a trial, just for the experience and because I had been waiting all day, I might as well make the most out of it. The only thing I was terrified of was having to deliberate and decide the fate of the defendant. Luckily they settled the case before it got that far.

[PeakDream]

Obviously, if you get picked, you don't have a choice. The point is, there are many ways not to get picked, lack of language skill, caring for new born, etc.. He took it seriously and he didn't even attempt to avoid the jury selection. Also, I personally sat in a criminal case that went to verdict. To be honest, after that experience, I have a new appreciation for the justice system.

[and1grad]

I've been on a jury. I thought it was pretty interesting.

[wordsmith]

To be honest, after that experience, I have a new appreciation for the justice system.

This is exactly what my mom said after the experience of being on a sequestered jury.