I got called for Jury Duty again... How many times have you been called.

[AuntieMe3]

Now going back and reading comments...why do I get it every year when apparently that's not normal?? LOL DD is 22 and just got her first summons in April, luckily for her, when she called her group was canceled the night before.

 

[_19disnA]

My guess is their 'random' selection process isn't so random after all.

 

[SM1992]

Summoned a bunch of times, mostly never had to report. On one occasion I made it to the questioning by the lawyers and was dismissed. It was a criminal case and I happened to live about two blocks from where it happened.
Wife served a couple of years ago on a case but wound up being an alternate.

 

[shawthorne44]

I can see a huge problem with juries being from a volunteer pool. That it wouldn't be a large pool would be a problem, but not because they'd be jaded. There would totally be plants added to the pool. I could even see a big law firm keeping a few on a secret payroll just for that. (Thinking of that John Grisham jury book) My dad talked to an older couple that was in the audience when he was a juror (afterward, obviously). They were retired and watching court cases was their hobby. He asked them if the jurors always decided like they would have. They said Yes, except when evidence was excluded so they had more info than the jury)

I am reminded of the first civil case in Dallas, TX. A woman was divorcing her husband. Immediately afterward she married one of the jurors. They grabbed people from near the courthouse for juries. Her next husband was there to marry her when the divorce was over, so he was hanging around.

 

[Skippy918]

4 times. First time I was on summer break from college, so I went and got selected for a case which ended up settling out of court.
Another time was for grand jury but since they had asked for volunteers from the pool, and the time commitment was huge, I opted not to volunteer. That would have been 3 half days a week for 3 months.
The other 2 times I got a summons from my former home state, so I just had to fill out the questionnaire saying I didn’t live there anymore. I don’t know how they still had my name as I haven’t lived in said state for 20 years.

 

[disneychrista]

I think maybe 6 - 8, maybe more. You don't have to be registered to vote to get summoned, at least here. They pull names from DMV records.

I used to beg off when my kids were young. I've gone in about 6 times. Got seated twice but dismissed. Once because it was a case I KNEW I couldn't be completely impartial. The other time, they "rejected" me. I work at the court house now. So no getting out of jury duty. But I do get paid my regular wage if I do get called and have to serve. The only time I've been called in three years I've worked there was settled that morning and we were all dismissed.

 

[monsterkitty]

Now going back and reading comments...why do I get it every year when apparently that's not normal?? LOL DD is 22 and just got her first summons in April, luckily for her, when she called her group was canceled the night before.

We can start our own club!

 

[karmic]

Back in the late 70s I got called and was excused as I was a nurse at the bedside at our local hospital- 40+ years have never been called again

 

[LadyBeBop]

Twice. Both times within a few years of each other. In different states.

The first time, in Ohio, I was in my mid-20s. Two week stint. Had to call every night to see if you had to come in. Had to go in about half of the time. Served as an alternate for a drug distribution case, but did not see the jury room.

Got married and moved to Kentucky. I was 8 months pregnant with my second child when I got the notification. Needless to say, I was excused. I thought I would be called soon after.

My second child turns 33 in September.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

I have been in the potential pool of jurors once. I was given a phone number to call like the day before. Every time I called it said whatever code it was I had did not need to come in.

I was disappointed because I wanted to go.

 

[*DisneyDreamer]

Twice, and I was picked for a jury both times. But the second time, it didn’t actually go to trial. They selected the jury right at the end of the day, let us leave planning to start the trial the next day, but then called us later that afternoon telling us our service was done because the defendant pled or whatever.

Both times I had to sit around for so long before being called. The first, I was at the courthouse the whole day, never called for a jury pool, but had to come back day 2 and was called for a pool right around lunchtime. And then that trial ended up lasting the rest of the week (it was an interesting experience to be part of though). The second time, I got called for the pool the first day, but midway though the afternoon.

 

[LovesTimone]

Having relatives and friends in law enforcement would not matter in a civil case. When they send the questionnaire and then pick your number they don't know what types of cases will be called your week or day, so law enforcement connections won't automatically disqualify anyone in advance.

On top of that, you should not assume you can never be picked. I was selected and served on the jury for a criminal trial on an illegal gun possession charge even though

• I'm an attorney
• with multiple uncles and cousins in law enforcement
• one of whom was convicted of a crime
• my father was murdered in a car jacking, and
• I'm a member of and regular contributor to an organization active in the gun control debate

No matter how much you think they might assume you're biased, unless you know someone involved in the case, there's a chance you will be selected. A lot depends on the individual judge and attorneys involved. You might happen to live in a county where they are extra selective about people with LE ties, but that is not a general automatic rule.

So far, 5 of the 10 times I have been called, they asked for a show of hands of people related to law enforcement, we were called up and had to state the relationship, when I said my brother and at the time he was activity working I was dismissed on the spot.

the next 5
1 - DUI case, very small pool of jurors,- they were asking questions about being stop by the police for any reason. Then the defense attorney started asking, each person do you know anyone in LE, and I said yes...my brother, and the defense attorney said dismiss this juror due to she would be prejudiced against my client... and with that out the door I went...

2- Breaking and entering, theft, home invasion case, it was a big burglary ring... I went to school with one of the guys involved... the minute he saw me, he said something to his lawyer, and before I could even sit down... the bailiff pointed at me and asked me to come over, when I did the lawyer asked me my name and did I know the defendant, and was my brother a cop... To which I answered yes, and out the door I went..

3 - Child molestation, over 100+ counts, plus all the pictures, and videos another 100+ counts on female child 3 years old. This case was handled differently... we were brought into the court room in small number maybe 10 people, and told what the case was and asked if we could be unbiased... Then one at the time, we had to go up and speak with the judge, and the defendant was sitting there and his lawyer, and the prosecutor. The judge asked me if I could be unbiased and I said No, and he asked me why, I said my daughter is 3, and there was no way I could possibly set it aside, I was in tears, and visibly shaking and just sick to my stomach. The prosecutor asked do you know anyone in LE, and again I said yes... the defense attorney, just said no... and I pretty much ran out the door...

4 - Murder charge... 1st degree... and several other charges... the person had confessed to the murder....So basically it was to see how things played out, and whether it was planned or not and the outcome was how he would spend the rest of his life... I made it into the court room, again in small groups, when they asked about LE in your direct family... I raised my hand with several other people, and the Judge said okay we just want to get this out of the way and this will not excuse you today,... When the defense attorney asked everyone about the death penalty, and it wasn't a yes or no type answer, you had to explain your stance on it... I was really surprised that I made it to the next round and then the next round... I really thought I was going to be on this jury... There were 20 or so people left... the next questions were about domestic violence, and stalking... about half way through all this, they called for a break... we were all called back in, and Thanked for our willingness to serve, and then excused...

5 - I guess I will know next month... how it goes...

 

[Cheburashka]

But still seems the process could be more efficient. Perhaps have a large pool of people who actually want to be on juries or perhaps are retired and looking for something to do. If you work, it tends to cause issues when you are tied up for maybe a week and have no idea when you will be released. It also sounded like if chosen for a jury, the case could go on for several days/weeks.

It wouldn't be a jury of peers, as required by the Constitution, if the jury were artificially limited to the kind of people who would volunteer to serve and don't have to work.

 

[fab1976]

Twice. First time I was still living at home with my parents. Got called to the box for selection, and got dismissed by the defense right off the bat. It was a trial against someone on drug charges I believe, and I was definitely not the “profile” they were going for. Second time I got called, went to the courthouse on the day and submitted to be excused due to having a 6 month old at home as well as a 5 year old and being a SAHM. That baby is now 8, so it’s been a while!

My husband has been called a few times. One of the times was about a month before our first baby was due. The judge gave him a really hard time about wanting to be excused. It was going to be a lengthy trial, and he could have potentially missed the birth if he was serving. Thankfully he was excused! The other times he was dismissed, once immediately upon check in lol. So no actual jury serving!

 

[Heather07438]

I've only been called twice. Both were done in a day.

You can move to the Jefferson side of 07438 zip code if you'd like to avoid jury duty.

Oak Ridge NJ 07438 is split between 2 towns, West Milford and Jefferson, and 2 counties, Passaic and Morris respectively. Morris County does not include 07438 in jury selection, the mailman said because long ago it caused too much confusion having 2 counties called from the same zip code.

 

[dvcgirl67]

I get called every 3-4 years it seems. I was able to get out of it a couple of times by writing a letter and proving that I was a sole proprietor at the time. Once I called in each day and never had to report, but that counted. Then in December of 2019 I had to go in...just for one long day in the basement of an old county courthouse building. It was easily one of the most depressing days....700 of us crammed together in that basement. Covid was most definitely not in my area at that time, because that set up was a petri-dish for sure. I didn't get called, and my group was released at the end of day, so I'm good until 2022 or so.

 

[goofyernmost]

Officially had 3 calls for Jury duty in Vermont and 1 call here in NC two weeks after I registered my car here. So the total is four. I managed to actually sit on a jury for two of them.

 

[KayMichigan]

Three times, all back in the 90s. Only got called in once, and got as far as sitting through the dated video that talks about what it means to serve on a jury (I think the video was 20 years old!). Before they started making the selection, the case got settled out of court, so we were all dismissed.

 

[ThisIsJason]

Four times for county, had to report twice. Got on the jury both times, both cases ended up only lasting one day. I hate how my county handles it. You get the paper work about 2 months before you have to report, but you don't find out if you have to report until after 5PM the night before.

Had Federal once. On call for a month but had to call in once a week (Friday) to see if you had to report Monday. Got on that jury, and it lasted 3 days (it was about money). The people who were dismissed were still on call and were being called back for a murder case.

 

[MrsPete]

Twice, never selected.
And I'm mid-50s.