I just found out that I am not exempt from Jury Duty, even though I am the sole daytime provider of care for my four children - 6,8,10,12yrs. What did any of you do with your children? Did the judge excuse you once you reported for jury duty? Can I legally, leave my 6/8/10/12 yr old children home alone for 4 hours. If I do have to report for duty at 8:30am, I can't drive my kids to school, and I need to pick them up in the afternoon - they don't walk home. I am normally not comfortable leaving them home alone for more than 30 minutes - and then, ONLY, if I am within a 2 mile radius, and have my cell phone turned on. My husband cannot take the time off of work, and works from 8am-6pm. My babysitter works at a daycare during the day. I have no family in the area, neither does my husband, so I will have to somehow rely on friends to get my kids to/from school and watch them for 4 hours in the afternoon. Right now, I'm hoping that my group doesn't get called. I've got a month until my jury week - but I'm stressin' already! Do y'all have any good ideas??
You can always ask for an extension and give them a date, and then you can have plenty of time to try to get a sitter.
I managed to doge this bullet as my group was never called. I was also told that mothers could be put on one day trials so they could be impacted less.
What I planned to do was take my youngest with me to the courthouse. I figured 20 minutes with my little ADHD child would convince anyone that it's not so easy getting childcare for a special needs child when I have to fight just to keep her in school. I also planned to drop my oldest at school the first day called, which would have made me late. Short of putting her in a daily taxi, which I can't afford, There is no way to ensure I can find her a ride for the duration of the trial.
Serving on s jury may be a privilege, but caring for your own children is a 24/7 responsibility that shouldn't be pawned off on someone else. The coorporate execs are excused to run their businesses. Aren't children just as important?
Anyone who thinks that you can just "get on the phone" and make arrangements for four children to be transported to and from multiple schools needs a reality check.
JM2c
I'd bring them (if it's legal) and ask to be excused in person. You didn't say if you were on call--you have to call in each day and find out if your number is called. If you are, you might never have to go in. Good luck!
E.:
I have never been in this situation so I can offer that much advice but would your neighbors be willing to help? Also, as far as care goes there is a place called Kidspark in San Jose that is a drop in/hourly day care. It is located by Valley Fair and I think there is one near Oakridge mall. http://www.kidspark.com/default.asp That might be a place to take your kids if you do have to serve. Good Luck.
Hi there,
I recently had jury duty too and didn't have care for my kids. I went there anyway (while he was in school) and they excused me at the front desk. Just because I did show up and fulfilled my obligation to, they excused me due to my circumstances with not having afterschool care for my Kindergartner. I was very relieved.
good luck to you!
E.,
It is a privilege to serve on a jury, not everyone gets selected. You have some time so de-stress.
Line up some help with your kids
You can’t keep your cell phone on if you are selected it will have to be on vibrate
If you have to fill out a questionnaire and do not want to serve it will be easy to not be selected based on your answers.
If you are verbally questioned about the case, same thing.
If you are too distracted by your own life and problems, you probably shouldn’t be entrusted to decide about someone who is on trial.
Blessings….
E.,
More than likely you will just have to call in every day and never end up going to the court house. If by (bad)luck you have to go in, they will not allow you to take your kids into the jury room. So dont rely on that idea to get out of it. I would suggest try to set up someone to watch your kids for at least the first day. Then when/if you go in, hopefully you can find someone there to explain your story to (not the receptionist because they dont really care what your excuse is). If all else fails, if you do get called up to sit on the jury, just tell them you will not be able to focus on the trial because you will be too concerned about your children. Alot of people have gotten out of jury duty for less important reasons.
good luck.
Can you have an announcement made in any (or all) of your children's classrooms? In one of the schools my kids went to there was a paring of parents who lived close who would take care of each other's children in an emergency. I remember once picking up a neighbor boy whose mother was a teacher and unavailable while I was a stay at home. He was sick and I just had him take a nap til his mom came home. I am sure that one of your children's friends would be glad to help out...or maybe some more so each child might be with a different family. People used to do this without expecting to be paid...N.
Hi E., I know it really sucks. They don't excuse anyone anymore. What you can do though, is call them and see if you can postpone it till the summertime. Then once you do that, when you are there, the judge should excuse you. My kids who are fulltime students did that and they did it again when we were going out of town. If you haven't sent your paper back yet, I think there is somewhere on the form to request change of date. Good Luck
