off topic ?- Jury duty

[jksmom]

I have a question. I received a summons for Jury Duty 9 days before I am scheduled to leave. I have been many times on my scheduled day and never actually served on a jury(not picked, sent home for the day, once had broken leg and couldn't go)Please do not slam me for this question! I would very much like to serve on a jury and feel very strongly about this being my responsibility. I am very civic minded. That said I realize vacation probably isn't a reason to not serve. Is that right? Any thoughts on this subject?

 

[frannn]

mention to anyone who will listen (in a very, very nice way) that you have plane tickets 9 days after the summons. I recieved a letter about jury duty right before my wedding, and luckily did not get picked. I think if the lawyers, etc are aware that you validly won't be able to serve with a clear conscience, they will probably not pick you (I hope). If you call with an excuse and do not end up going to the initial meeting, they may summons you again very soon after.

 

[robsmom]

I have been called for Jury duty 6 or so times but have never been on a trial. Some times you go all day and don't even get considered for a trial. If you do go to a court room to go through an actual jury selection the judge will explain the case and how long they think it will be. Many are only a day or two! If the case is going to go for a week or more, they will probably ask if there is any reason you can not serve. The last time I recall several people being excused due to vacation committments. Just be sure you can prove it. One man told the judge that he was getting married in 2 weeks and had a honeymoon planned. He said that he would be happy to do his duty but he thought his future wife might be a little upset with him. After laughing, the judge took a quick look at his invitation and let him go.

 

[Strings]

On your summons there should be an area to request dismissal. Fill it in and then call. Explain about the vacation. I would just say it includes initial date. They should give you a different date in about 6 months time.

 

[vicb]

jksmom, I do not think you are trying to shirk your civic duty, I would be pretty upset if I thought jury duty would cut in on my WDW time!

I too have been called twice but not picked to serve on an actual trial. On my summons there was a place to request an alternate date, I think if you can prove you have reservations or airline tickets you can be rescheduled. I heard people in the jury pool room talking about how they had rescheduled due to college exams.

Good luck.

 

[disneychrista]

Call them explain that you have travel plans (airline tickets etc) for 9 days after the summons. You should be able to "reschedule" your summons for another time.

 

[disneefamily]

Disnee Dad Says.......................................You should be able to postpone, I did that in California, and if I remember correctly I even picked the week I wanted to serve.

Another option is go ahead and go for it. The longest jury I sat on was about 6 days, including the weekend.

If you get picked for a serial killer trial, start waving your tickets frantically!!!

Most likely it will be something minor, drugs, theft, assualt, often done in three days.

Here, they give you an estimate of how long it should take. Don't take anything over three days because they always under estimate the time!

 

[Kermit]

I would call and ask them what to do. They may already know what case(s) you are being considered for, so they'll have an estimate of how long you'd be serving. Some cases just take a few hours. If they tell you to come, bring proof of your reservations, especially copies of the airline tickets. I've seen judges refuse to dismiss people who didn't have proof that they had a vacation scheduled. But they will be willing to work with you if you can show that you really are planning on being gone and that the plans were made before you got the summons.

 

[TandyR]

The one and only time my parents took me and my brother to WDW happened to coinsided with the one and only time my mother has ever been called for jury duty. What she did was write a letter to an address on the summons and explained that she was taking her kids on a once in a lifetime vacation and that she had always wanted to serve on a jury, but she just couldn't at this time. They sent her a letter back saying no problem they would put her back in the pool and she should be summoned again soon. Well that was over 20 years ago and she hasn't been summoned again....I don't think they are related it is just funny. I am sure you can get it worked out.

 

[kcatoir]

I am dealing with that exact issue right now.
Here in OR we are required to serve for a full quarter...yes that 3 FULL MONTHS.
We have to call in on our "day" once a week and find out if we are required to report the following day.
Of course our wdw trip falls during this time, can't tell you how stressed I was when I recieved summons.
Luckly they are very flexible with vacations, we are required to submit all dates for vacations, dr appts ect... and we will not be asked to report during these times.

 

[swilphil]

My husband is a criminal attorney (that's an attorney who does criminal law, not one that commits crimes-LOL). Most trials only last two or three days max, unless it's a murder case. I would recommend calling the courthouse and asking if they have an idea how long the case will be. If they think it may be longer, ask to have your duty postponed.

 

[The Disney Bunch]

Here in Jersey you can get a postponement due to vacation, I believe. You only are allowed one postponement however - check into it and see

 

[crzy4dsny]

This happened to me last year. I went down on the day they said I had to appear. I saw it as a free day off work. I got called in to a seperate room for the questioning part. The trail was supposed to start the same week I was leaving. Thats when I told them that I would be away on vacation. They immediately excused me.