Jury Duty :(

[Charles4515]

36 minutes ago, mnocket said:

On a side note, I was recently surprised to learn that in Colorado you are automatically excused from jury duty if you are 70+ years old. 

They just raised the age to be excused to 75 in Texas but as I understand it it is not automatic. You have to request to be excused and then you will automaicly be excused then and thereafter. . 

[mamafun]

Funny (and sort of related) note.  I have been eligible for jury duty for over 30 years.  I have never received a summons.  My husband, on the other hand, has been called at least 7 times since we've been together.  

 

My son received one when he was 20, from the state he goes to college in, where he isn't a resident.

[mnocket]

Just now, Charles4515 said:

They just raised the age to be excused to 75 in Texas but as I understand it it is not automatic. You have to request to be excused and then you will automaicly be excused then and thereafter. . 

Right.  You are not banned from serving on a jury, but if you ask to be excused, one of the listed reasons for automatic excusal is age. 

[Cruisercl]

When I had a cruise booked and was summoned for jury duty I told them I would be out of the country that week. I requested to be deferred to a month I knew I would be in town and told them that.

No problem. 

[leaveitallbehind]

2 hours ago, mnocket said:

On a side note, I was recently surprised to learn that in Colorado you are automatically excused from jury duty if you are 70+ years old. 

PA guidelines:

While there is no age limitation to participate in jury service, citizens who are 70 years of age or older, upon receipt of a Qualification Questionnaire or Summons, may request an age-related excusal that will permanently remove them from the Court's list of prospective jurors.

 

Kind of odd in away in that you would think they would be the more older and wiser of the pool....

[navybankerteacher]

5 hours ago, DarrenM said:

Urgh taxes. I avoid them.😜

 

Nothing wrong with Jury duty.

 

Its that its forced on you I have a problem with.

It only needs to be forced when the average citizen tries to evade it.  

[SbbquilterUT]

Had the same happen - 6 month Grand Jury duty and had to provide paper documents showing what we had paid and what we would forfeit.  Did get excused and did not serve a single day I. Those six months.  Good Luck

[GeezerCouple]

9 minutes ago, SbbquilterUT said:

Had the same happen - 6 month Grand Jury duty and had to provide paper documents showing what we had paid and what we would forfeit.  Did get excused and did not serve a single day I. Those six months.  Good Luck

 

I sometimes wonder about the "pool" of prospective jurors who would/could be available for such an extended time period, and some are even longer.

They may not meet every day (but perhaps some do?), but one can't plan regular work around something like that.

 

Who are they likely to be?'

Okay, retirees who would/could postpone those cruises and other vacations, but younger folks...?

 

??

 

GC

[mammajamma2013]

Not a cruise, but a planned visit to see family at Christmas a couple of years ago. Asked for and received a deferment immediately. I am in New Mexico.

[ldubs]

5 hours ago, mnocket said:

On a side note, I was recently surprised to learn that in Colorado you are automatically excused from jury duty if you are 70+ years old. 

 

In California, I think a certain age can be used as a reason to be excused, but it is not automatic.  Seems it might have come about with the pandemic and the need to protect older citizens.  Or it might not have.  I can't recall really.     

 

Seems odd that someone old enough to do all sorts of other important things isn't elibible for jury service in Colorado.  

[navybankerteacher]

6 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

In California, I think a certain age can be used as a reason to be excused, but it is not automatic.  Seems it might have come about with the pandemic and the need to protect older citizens.  Or it might not have.  I can't recall really.     

 

Seems odd that someone old enough to do all sorts of other important things isn't elibible for jury service in Colorado.  

In Connecticut age exemption is upon request - not a matter of ineligibility -you can remain in the jury pool if you want to.  The sad fact about US juries is that a lot of the more intelligent folks do not serve, because they are able to duck it - when I was working I served several times - did not get salary for first week away while unemployed people loved it.  Self-employed people really suffer.

[ldubs]

31 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

In Connecticut age exemption is upon request - not a matter of ineligibility -you can remain in the jury pool if you want to.  The sad fact about US juries is that a lot of the more intelligent folks do not serve, because they are able to duck it - when I was working I served several times - did not get salary for first week away while unemployed people loved it.  Self-employed people really suffer.

 

CA, at least in my county, and CT are the same with the age exemption.   After I turned 70 the jury summons stopped coming.  Now I'll probably get one next week.  haha.  

[Gunner 66]

Same here in Minnesota.....over 70, you can be excused. I was a teacher for35 years and was excused the first couple times I was called. Then, that ended and I had to go. I still received my school pay for those days. But the school got the the Jury Duty pay. I was called 8 times and served on 5 of those......4 as the foreman. Basically because I had experience as a Forman so the rest elected me again. Very interesting experiences. All were for criminal cases except 1 civil.

[mnocket]

2 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

In California, I think a certain age can be used as a reason to be excused, but it is not automatic.  Seems it might have come about with the pandemic and the need to protect older citizens.  Or it might not have.  I can't recall really.     

 

Seems odd that someone old enough to do all sorts of other important things isn't elibible for jury service in Colorado.  

I wasn't clear.  You are not banned from serving on a jury.  However, if you apply for an exemption, one of the check boxes that grants you an automatic exemption is being age 70+.

[mnocket]

2 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

In Connecticut age exemption is upon request - not a matter of ineligibility -you can remain in the jury pool if you want to.  The sad fact about US juries is that a lot of the more intelligent folks do not serve, because they are able to duck it - when I was working I served several times - did not get salary for first week away while unemployed people loved it.  Self-employed people really suffer.

I wasn't clear.  That's the same way it works in Colorado too.

[ldubs]

8 minutes ago, mnocket said:

I wasn't clear.  You are not banned from serving on a jury.  However, if you apply for an exemption, one of the check boxes that grants you an automatic exemption is being age 70+.

 

My mistake.  It seems we have the same process.  

[Nebr.cruiser]

We've both been able to get deferrals when jury duty popped up before a cruise.  There was no problem, it seemed to be almost a given that we would be excused.  

[SbbquilterUT]

8 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

I sometimes wonder about the "pool" of prospective jurors who would/could be available for such an extended time period, and some are even longer.

They may not meet every day (but perhaps some do?), but one can't plan regular work around something like that.

 

The system here is that the Grand Jury is only called when needed for a specific case or group of cases - only meet occasionally as needed.

[sparks1093]

14 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

It only needs to be forced when the average citizen tries to evade it.  

The judge told us that the law gave him the authority to send the bailiff out onto the street and impress passerby into jury service if the need arose, which is the end result of enough citizens evading the summons. 

12 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

In Connecticut age exemption is upon request - not a matter of ineligibility -you can remain in the jury pool if you want to.  The sad fact about US juries is that a lot of the more intelligent folks do not serve, because they are able to duck it - when I was working I served several times - did not get salary for first week away while unemployed people loved it.  Self-employed people really suffer.

I heard one comedian say that he felt bad for criminal defendants, because their fate lay in the hands of 12 people not smart enough to get out of jury duty. 

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

The judge told us that the law gave him the authority to send the bailiff out onto the street and impress passerby into jury service if the need arose, which is the end result of enough citizens evading the summons. 

I heard one comedian say that he felt bad for criminal defendants, because their fate lay in the hands of 12 people not smart enough to get out of jury duty. 

I heard a senior officer at the bank where I worked say the same ..about a staff member who spent a long time on a murder case on Long Island.

[lenquixote66]

I always enjoyed jury duty and have been a juror on several interesting trials .

 

[lynncarol]

I really thought being on a jury would be interesting, but wasn't even called for duty until I was in my fifties.  As luck would have it, I had a cruise scheduled and they deferred my jury duty with only a phone call.  Years passed until I got called up again.  This time I went, only to have the defendant 'plead out' just before the trial started and we were all sent home.  So now I am in my late seventies, and nobody 'official' seems to want me anymore...destined it seems to never serve on a jury.  

[Charles4515]

32 minutes ago, lynncarol said:

I really thought being on a jury would be interesting,

I was picked on the second time I had to go to the courthouse. It was interesting as I got to see how the justice system worked. It was a two day trial. Once was a good experience but one time was enough. Sitting around while they choose from the pool the two times, the voir dire was boring part. The second time I thought my answer would keep me off but nope, that didn't work . It was in the days before smartphones. I did have a paperback to read. 

Edited February 29 by Charles4515

[PurpleHays]

I've been called once, for a two week trial. I was one of three nurses picked. Work paid for the first week, the second came out of my PTO bank. I think they only pay for a week because the docs can always get off.

 

It was an educational experience. I learned a lot, but have no desire to repeat it. DH, on the other hand, is dying to get called, but he's retired and has all the time in the world.

[DarrenM]

On 2/28/2024 at 8:53 PM, navybankerteacher said:

It only needs to be forced when the average citizen tries to evade it.  

Sorry but it is forced. We have all been conditioned to just accept these things but it is most definitely forced.

 

Yes you can defer it, but you cant decline it. So its forced.

 

I have done it in The UK and had to swear on the bible. Which was also weird as I not religious in any way.

 

We have some very strange laws/rules when you think about it.