Ahira's Hangar

I have been called twice for jury duty. The first time, I was nursing a four month old. I told them I was happy to serve, as long as I could bring my nursing son with me.

I was excused.

The second time was after we moved to Gator Town. Florida has linked jury duty to driver licenses, instead of voter's registration. My drivers license is registered at FIL's house midstate, as we use that as our premanent address. It's about a two hour drive away.

Again, I said I would be happy to serve, as long as I was reimbursed for mileage, or put up in a hotel and fed.

I was excused.

The entire state of Michigan goes by driver's license lists...

I have been called twice. Once for state district court and once for county court. I went in both times.

The call I am dreading is for Federal Court. The trials sometime last for months. At least with the district court and county court, they both try to make it "one trial, one day".

The pay for jurors is just wrong. I lost money when I went to district court, as what I paid out for child care was a whole lot more than the pittance they pay you.

And from my friends who got called to Federal Court - the courthouse is in downtown Detroit, and the parking & daily lunch costs more than what they pay you.

FYI, most states and juristictions are using the one day/one trial system ATT.

The system by which jury pools are selected is very strange to me. For nearly twenty years in California I was elegible for selection, and I only received one Jury summons, but at the time I was away at University and could not go. When I returned to my parent's place for summer break, they had moved away from that county and I would not be eligible to serve based on previous home residence.

In the twelve years or so I've lived in Illinois, I've had three summons sent to me. Served on one jury a personal injury case involving an automobile accident. My most recent summons came in March 2007, went to the courthouse and spent the day in the jury pool room; FWIW, during the whole day no-one from the group was called to courtroom for potential jury.

Beaureacracy.

--A

The first time I got called was to state district court. The judge at that court tried to do all jury things on Fridays. So you had selection Friday, and if you got put into a jury, you would have to go back on a different Friday for the trial. I got selected for a jury (everyone who showed up got put on at least one jury) and had to go back on a different Friday later in the month.

And - they never had the actual trial. Turned out it was supposed to be the trial of a guy who allegedly was beating the crap out of his girl friend, and when the neighbor lady tried to intervene, beat the crap out of her, as well, for a bonus crime.

So everyone is at court - the cops who arrested him, the judge, the jury, the lawyers, and the witnesses (the neighbor lady was there with her husband and what looked like ten kids of various ages).

And the guy had skipped town the night before, so no trial, and everyone got to go home.

You could tell the cops were mad. They wanted to nail that asshat!

When I got called to county court, everyone had to show up an unGodly early hour for jury selection in downtown Ann Arbor, where parking is well nigh impossible. They had something like ten trials scheduled to go - but then they settled 6-7 of them and only the first few people to have their numbers called had to be jurists. I escaped, and went home for a long winter's nap. And I got out of work for a day for that one (Fridays are my day off, so I was not able to get out of work those two Fridays for district court).

I was really lucky - everyone else I know who has been called to county court had to do at least one trial. One of my firends had to be juror for a case where a little kid had been killed in a car accident, and it ripped her up. Another got a case where a guy got drunk and high and tried to go parasailing on a local lake that is lined with tall trees and filled with logs and islands and penninsulas covered with tall trees. Of course, he ended up breaking nearly every bone in his body, and tried to sue his buddy the boat owner. My friend told me the jury laughed him out of he courtroom.

And I get yet another jury selection questionaire thingee in the mail.

Yep, I average getting jury duty every 3-5 years.

I am going to include a xerox copy of my doctor's note for my job, saying that I am being treated for exhaustion, and that sometimes I simply cannot function. Maybe I can get out of this one.

This is is another one for county court in Ann Arbor. One the form they say they can call you every twelve months, which is freaking ridiculous. People do have jobs and children, and for some people jury duty makes you lose money in lost wages or in extra child care.

I've gotten notices a few times, always for the city court in the town where I used to live. They have a call-in system for those who are in the jury pool -- you call the number the Friday before, and if your group's number is not called, then you don't have to show up. It's happened to me a couple of times that I called and my group didn't have to report on Monday. I assume those cases were settled or postponed or something.

There was one time that I begged off because of child care responsibilities -- either I was nursing, or I was a single mom with little kids, can't remember which now.

There was one time that I actually had to show up. The court paid us in cash for lunch and parking reimbursement (and my firm doesn't dock our pay for jury duty so I didn't lose any money -- I work for lawyers, after all, and they have a vested interest in supporting the system ). Basically I sat in the jury room until a bunch of us were called to sit in the box and be questioned by the attorneys. I gave the defense attorney the most intelligent look I could -- and I was bounced.

"haven't been called/haven't served"

I sometimes wonder how impartial a juror I would be. The fear that I'm being swayed by unconscious biases would make me extremely careful in how I weigh the arguments in a case.

Which is probably a lot better than not thinking you have any unconscious bias at all.

--A