Jury duty

[hiaasenrocks]

Has anyone had any luck being excused from jury duty for legitimate purposes, like a medical condition?

I got a jury duty summons on Saturday that requires my service for the last full week of May. I've never tried to get excused in the past, but three years ago I was diagnosed with a medical condition that I believe would make it nearly impossible to serve. Both of my doctors agree and have faxed letters to the Clerk of Court's office, as per the instruction for requesting an excuse.

Anyway, I'm concerned about this and it has me pretty stressed out. Just wondering what experiences you might have had.

Thanks.

[reyd reid reed]

1. When I got my summons

I wound up getting seated -- but there were some people in the same pool who had medical issues and the judge was very solicitious about it. They were excused fairly quickly and they didn't have any documentation at all. If you've got paperwork, I wouldn't think you'd have any problems.

[Zoigal]

2. I've been excused

for medical reasons with no problem...no documentation either. Actually, i noted it on the
preliminary forms and didn't even have to report. Hope this eases your stress level.

[FunkyLeprechaun]

3. I was summoned for jury duty

three times. I excused myself for one (there was a 6 month wait), then they summoned me again and I had a doctor write a note for me. Two years later they summoned me again (I was about to leave the state because I was going to graduate university) and I said it would be impossible now because I was leaving the country!

The state, Masssachusetts. I don't get why they keep asking students to do jury duty. All the times they summoned me I was going to be out of state (I went home to Minnesota, as it was summer vacation).

I know it's a civic duty but it's a pain in the arse when you live in another state and have to go back just for the jury duty.

[SeattleGirl]

4. I was excused from jury duty by the judge in a case I was called in for.

My employer at the time wanted us to automatically opt out for work reasons, but I talked to them and told them that I felt it was my responsibility to participate. However, the first case I was called for was expected to last for at least 3 weeks. I was scheduled for surgery in 2 weeks, so the judge excused me.

The second trial I was called for was only supposed to last a week, but then the perp ended up making a deal with the prosecutor, so I was excused from that one too.

I don't think you should have much of a problem getting out of jury duty for med reasons.

[Eagle_Eye]

5. You should put every effort to BE ON the jury!

from the website Fully Informed Jury

http://www.fija.org//index.php?page=displaytxt&id=31

"you can do more "political good" as a juror than in practically any other way as a citizen: your vote on the verdict is also a measure of public opinion on the law itself--an opinion which our lawmakers are likely to take seriously. Short of being elected to office yourself, you may never otherwise have a more powerful impact on the rules we live by than you will as a trial juror."

If you want off of the jury, tell them you belong to the NRA and listen to Rush Limbaugh. They will escort you out the door.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

6. Membership in NRA does not get you excused.

it came up in "voir dire" (sp?) and I still ended up on the jury. There was no gun involved in the case, so maybe that made a difference.

[dysfunctional press]

7. for me, ankylosing spondylitis = permanent disability = no jury duty.

don't sweat it- if you faxed letters from your doctor, you're fine. i never even did that much- i handled it all over the phone, never showed up for the jury call, and i've never gotten another summons.

[lizerdbits]

8. When I got summoned in MD

The judge asked anyone with medical conditions that they felt made them ineligible to state them. They chose the first 12 people and I was about 25th so I didn't have to do it.
When I got summoned in VA I had to fax them a copy of my lease to prove I didn't live in the state anymore, about 4 months after moving so I'd registered my car, got an MD license, etc. I guess doing that in another state doesn't alert them in any way that you've moved. My mom had to mail me the summons. Interesting note that at least on Montgomery county they pool from anyone with a drivers license so people who don't register to vote to avoid jury duty will get a surprise. They said you only get summoned every 9 years since they have a bigger pool and I've been summoned once in 10 years.

[BarenakedLady]

9. Yup about 4-5 times now

Last time was two weeks ago.

Well, this last time I was postponed until October when my youngest (hopefully) will be in school full time. My only excuse was caring full time for my young children. I've gotten more jury summons than anyone I know. All I had to do was send in an email. They called back the same day to postpone me.

[Atman]

10. Here's a sure-fire way to get out of it...at least in CT

(Skip to second paragraph if you want to avoid brief lecture about service to justice)

First of all let me say that I'm one of those geeks that think jury duty is one of the most important services a citizen can perform. Really. We bitch about crazy trial awards and such, and part of that is because all the "smart" people are always trying to shirk their responsibility, leaving only the dregs and those crazy fools like me who think it's important. I've served on a civil rights case which took a week, after which we freed some poor bastard who'd been in jail for six months (didn't have money for bail), over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, for hanging up a public phone on a black woman, who filed federal CIVIL RIGHTS charges against him for it. Of course, we didn't know anything about his incarceration until after we found in his favor, upon which he came up to us literally in tears, thanking us and explaining that he'd been in jail all that time. The other case I was on ruled against a family whose 10-year-old son fell off his bike on a public sidewalk, and attempted to sue the state of Florida for the millions of dollars he might have earned if he'd ever been able to fulfill his dream of being a pro football player. It takes sane people to stop this kind of shit.

That being said -- in CT, you're allowed to postpone your date of service. You get a form in the mail and request another date. Always choose the day before Thanksgiving. You'll get a confirmation letter approving the date change and telling you to call on the day of service to find out where to report, and when you call you'll get a message saying "since the court is closed for the Thanksgiving holiday, you are relieved of your obligation."

Your results may vary; states have widely different requirements.

.

[hiaasenrocks]

11. Thank you all for your comments.

I do know that jury duty is a civic responsibility, and that is why I never even attempted to get excused in the past, for any reason, until this medical condition arose. I'm not trying to simply "get out of it" because of my condition; I am also of the opinion that my condition may prevent me from being a good, reliable juror, and that's bad for the system. I know that sounds self-serving, but it's truly how I feel.

Again, thanks for all the comments.

[Roon]

12. I served on a jury for a stabbing once

but then I WANTED to serve. After I served I used my hearing loss as an excuse to get out of jury duty. I get summonsed once a year.

[Joe Fields]

13. Here's what you do with jury duty notices. This is what I did..

Several years ago I got a jury duty summons. I sent the summons back with a note that said, "I refuse to sit in judgement of other people. Prosecute me, if you feel you must, for my refusal."

I never heard back from them.

[Catbird]

14. Adventures in jury duty

I've been called for jury duty several times but have yet to sit on a jury.

I have a medical condition that makes it difficult, but not impossible, to sit on a jury. But I'm still working so they figure I can serve on a jury.

For one jury call all of the cases were settled, so there were no juries.

For another jury call I was released early, partly for medical reasons. Another woman with a much more serious medical condition was not excused entirely from jury duty, but was released even earlier.

For yet another call I was not picked for any of the juries. All of the cases were DUI cases, and the lawyers did not want anyone who had been on either side of a DUI incident. I had once been hit by a drunk driver. In addition, I stated that I disagreed with then current state law and would not require any evidence beyond blood alcohol level to find someone guilty.

The best excuse was one used by one of my former neighbors. When the pool members were asked if there was any reason they could not sit on a jury, she told them she was not a US citizen, which was in fact the case.