Jury Duty

I was summoned a couple of months ago and I wrote a formal letter stating I couldn't find a sitter and i was exused. If that doesn't work I would bring them with. They won't want you there. Good Luck

I went through this recently. I also have an almost 2 year old son and I am expecting in August. I wrote to the judge letting him know I was pregnant and had no child care for my son. My friend in Chicago told me she did the same thing. Anyway, I have been excused. They are usually pretty understanding. Good luck!

I was able to ask for it to be delayed. I am a single parent, and didn't have anyway to miss work to do this. In the past they would defer it and i wouldn't hear from them again for years. Now i think there are more rules and you can only defer a couple of times.

Good luck!

Hi D.,
I haven't dealt with jury duty here in Nebraska-knock on wood, but had this situation in Ohio. I wrote a letter stating that it would be a financial hardship as we did not have a sitter to watch my 3 girls. I worked parttime but it would required me to pay for childcare for 3 extra days and cost me $70 a day so $210 for a week. In Ohio we had to go for 2 weeks straight. I focused me letter on the financial hardship it would cause my family and I was dismissed. Hope this can help you.

In IA all I did was fill out something online that said I was a SAHM & breastfeeding & they excused me.
Brekka

I'm a stay at home mom and I live at KI if you were looking for a sitter. I don't think they excuse for that although they should:-) Good luck.

Hi D.,

I hope you have better luck than I did, though it turned out okay. I was called for jury duty about three yrs ago in Hennepin Cty, MN. I had a child in elem school who attended a school outside of our transportation area so I needed to drive her each day, I also had a toddler and was expecting our third child. I called and explained that I had no one to fill in for me and that I would not leave my newborn with a caregiver even if I had one b/c I would be nursing. I was basically told childcare was my problem and I would need to bottlefeed. I was furious. All I wanted was an extension of my duty until my youngest was in preschool. I was and would be happy to serve on a jury, but I didn't feel it was right to have to incur a huge family hardship because some loser committed a crime. Anyway, I got no sympathy and I was not excused. However after continued calls and letters, I got someone to delay my service until the week of Christmas. At least then it would be easier for my DH to take off work and my eldest would not need transport to school. Also, since it would be the week of Christmas, I would be 'on call' since it was likely most attorneys would be asking for a continuance due to the holiday. If no case came up, my service would be considered filled. So that's what happened. I was on call and no case came up. It ended up working out, but could really have been a nightmare. We were new in town and really didn't know anyone well enough who could take on three extra kids for an undetermined amount of time.

The whole system sort of stinks. I think we should be able to sign up for times when we could fulfill our civic duty to serve on a jury. For instance, now it would be almost no trouble for me to serve. If I'd had to serve back then, I imagine i would have been so ticked off that I could not have been objective with the case. Good luck! I hope it works out for you. Being a STAHM is rife with obstacles!

I called and told them I had small children at home and they excused me. It was a pretty small community, so maybe that had an impact, but maybe not.

D., unfortunately in our country we parents who do not work outside the home are regarded as parents who simply do not work. Write the judge a letter and tell her/him you can not get time off work and you have nobody to fill in for you. This is what I wrote to our local court when I was still nursing my child and they accepted it. If they deny it then you could always get a note from your child's doctor which states it is not reasonable for your son to stay home by himself while you are at jury duty, and unless the court will provide childcare for you you are unavailable and cannot fathom how you could take on so much additional work on top of all the work you already have to do.

I was called in for jury duty and had the same predicament. I simply called the number they supplied and told them about my situation and was excused over the phone.

D.,

I was in the same situation when I got called to jury duty and yes, I was excused. I had to show up on the first day and had a SAHM friend watch him, but they were quick to let me go without a hassle.

S.

Just send them a very kind letter explaining your situation and telling them when might be a better time (season) for you to serve.

Something of which most folks are not aware is that even when you do serve, it is not a continous duty. It is often a case of "hurry up and wait". The have called a large pool of potential jurors, far more than they need. They will tell you on what days they need you to show up. Then when you do show up you will wait to be called. Often the lawyers will negotiate an 11th hour settlment and a case is dropped. When there is a case that actually goes to trial, they will call something like 40 jurors into the courtroom and the lawyers will then begin weeding them out based upon what attributes and experiences they believe might not be favorable to their client. Often times you will sit for an hour in a hallway or waiting room and then be told you can go or you will spend another hour in the courtroom and wait while the lawyers choose the 12 out of 40 they think will be easiest to persuade that their client is innocent. On rare ocassions you might actually get chosen for the jury and then the need for babysitting begins!

I know for sure that you can be excused from jury duty if you are nursing, I'm sure that if you are pregnant with one at home already they will excuse you. Good luck!

D.,
Yes, I was summoned for jury duty a few weeks after bringing my daughter home from the hospital (plus I was there for 2 weeks with complications.) When I called the court house to tell them my situation, they postponed my jury duty...by a month.
So my answer is yes, they will excuse you but only for a little bit.
What I found is that when I went, and they were going through the process of choosing the jury, the judge asks if anyone should be excused due to child care issues. You then tell the judge that you don't have anyone else to take care of your child and you won't be chosen for the jury.
It seems that you can't say that over the phone, you have to go in that first day.
Hope this helps!
A.

I was summoned last month. If you look on the back of the letter, there should be a place where you can write the reason you can't do it. Since we both live in MN, I would think the state has the same form for they use for all counties. I used the child care excuse also.
My husband on the other hand would love to be called for it and is more than able to, and they have never called on him.

I'm not sure where you live but I have been summoned for Jury Duty 4 times in the past 11 years that I've been a parent and never once served (although it might be kind of fun!) because I am a stay at home mom of 4 kids, with no babysitters (my parents watch the kids occasionally but they still work), I have nursed all my babies and I have a child that was very special needs until about age 4. There is a procedure you must follow...usually a letter stating the reason to the jury clerk and then you will be excused.

D.,
I have been summoned multiple times. My husband is a minister. I am a SAHM. My family doesn't live anywhere close by. Each time I have received the form, I take it down to a notary and have them notarize the form stating that I do have childcare for my small children and my husband is on call 24/7. I have never had a problem with them accepting this excuse.
Good luck!

D.,
I posted about this very same issue about a month ago. I was summoned for jury duty on 4/28. I was in the same boat, although my youngest is 5 1/2 (still a few months away from kindergarten) and we've never used a sitter. (All of our family lives out-of-state.) My husband had arranged to stay home with our son that day, but I'm not sure what would have happened beyond that, if I'd been assigned a trial. I ended up calling the night before (Douglas Co, Omaha) and wasn't needed. Good luck! I hope everything works out for you.

S.

Just write on there and tell them that you have a 2 year old at home and that you have no one to watch him. Also tell them that you are pregnant. It is easy to get out of it or get it rescheduled.

Yes, most of the time they will.
I was summoned for jury duty as well. Well my boys are 7 years apart and my youngest was just a baby and oldest was in school. So, I called and asked them what I could do to maybe get out of it as I had to take and pick him up from school and I had a baby at home. I had to write a letter explaining why I couldn't attend. Then I had to wait to see if it was approved to excuse me. It was. So, don't waste to much time or they might not. I did this right away.
So, there should be a number on there call them and explain your situation and they will tell you what to do.
Good luck

D.,
It has been several years but when I got called up for jury duty here in Nebraska. I showed up with my child and told them I was a nursing mother and they excused me.

P.

I was summoned during my busy landscaping season at my work years ago (before kids) and my neighbor told me that if your employer needs you to be around at your work, they can just postpone your duty, and it was true. I sent a request, then they called me, said thanks, no big deal, and when could they call me again. I told them january, and that was when they called me...so......if your sitter will be done with school on a certain date, just call the number and offer to postpone your jury duty dates...good luck...

It really depends on whether it's federal or state. I work for federal court in Minnesota and have quite a bit of knowledge about the federal jury system, but I don't know much about the state courts. People who have children at home or elderly that they care for are excused. You should call the jury clerk to find out what you need to do to achieve this. Don't wait until the day you're expected to go in because it delays the process. If you can get excused or deferred right away, the jury clerk can summon someone else in.

You might look into being excused for 'self-employment'. I don't know if it would be considered the same thing or not. My mom was self-employed when she was summoned and they excused her because she was the only one to take on her responsibilities. Best wishes...

I also live in MN and 4 years ago when my son was 18 months, I had the same situation. When I called and told them that, they told me that was no excuse and I HAD to find daycare. Luckily I found a daycare center that took drop ins and took him in a few times the week before to get him used to it. I ended up on a grand jury for a week. It worked out ok, but I think the big daycare setting was a little overwhelming for him. As soon as that was over I realized that that would not be the only time that I would need care for him during the day. We have no family in the area and all our friends work during the day. I then found a home daycare that would take him 2 mornings a week. That gave me a welcome break, him some socialization, and also a "back up" when I needed it.

You should be able to get an excuse/extension for it. They will resend another request in a few months.

Several years ago I was a SAHM with two little ones and no other care provider. I sent a letter to that effect in reply to the jury duty request and never was called back. Hope this helps!

Hi D.,
Yes I panicked tooo when that summons thing came in the mail, but after trying to get out of it, the date came where I was suppose to do jury duty and the person settled out of court.

So, you might not even need to do it.

Have someone lined up just in case though. But alot of times you won't even have to be there.

J.

. . .AND you are expecting! Congratulations! I would think you would be able to get your physician to give you a letter excusing you from Jury Duty, based on the stress it may invoke. That alone would solve your issue of not having anyone to care for your 2 year old. The doctor can't excuse you from JD, but a letter from them will certainly help in allowing the judge to excuse you. Good Luck & God Bless!

B.
SAHM of 3 year old boy, 13 year old boy and 14 year old daughter.

I was also 'summoned' for jury duty. Fortunately, I had to show up one day and the judge asked if anyone has a reason for not being here. I was honest and stated I had no one to watch the kids. I was a SAHM and with two little ones (4 and 2) who are not in school.

I was excused.

The lawyers and judge probably don't want you there either. One thought: you could probably use the pregnancy to your advantage and state how you need to frequently use the bathroom and stretch your legs or walk.

Good luck!

Hi D. -

I was called to Jury Duty for Carver County when my oldest was a baby (about 4 years ago) and was excused because I did not have child care.