Summoned for Jury Duty...Advice?

I was called for the hole month of November last year and all I had to do is call in every sunday and it was a recording telling you if they needed you or not. I never had to go in...

About a week before your scheduled date, you will get your panel # and a phone # to call ( if you haven't already). Every Sunday night you need to call in to see which panels need to report that week. A lot of times there are no trials scheduled, so you won't have to report at all that week. If I remember right, you are "on call" for the month????? I got picked for the jury my first day. It was a quick trial and I was out by 5:00pm. There will probabley be several of you. Most of you will go home or even get the option to go home rather than sit on a jury. I was nervous too, but it is very simple and you don't get put on the stand to answer questions like on TV. :) Good luck! If you get picked, it is pretty interresting!

I've done jury duty twice (once in St. Louis cty and once in Dakota cty). both time I went the first day and sat. You get all the information about what will or could happen.. then sit to wait to see if anyone actually gets to a jury trial. I never had to go back a second day. Bring books, magazines.... whatever to keep you busy because it can get to be a l-o-n-g day!

I was summoned last fall and my husband had to stay home with the kids. The only way Polk county where I live would excuse you is if you were a nursing mother.

I found it all to be very interesting and understand how it all works now. I only had to go for one day and wasn't picked to sit on the jury so was released to go home. I had to call a phone number the next day and see if I needed to report for the following day and my number wasn't chosen.

That was it.

Dear S.,

I'm assuming you live in Nebraska, since you mentioned Douglas Co. If not, this is what I went through the last time I was called in for Jury Duty 10 years ago. But first, this year's is slightly different in the sense that now they have given you a phone number to call if you need to show up the next day. You should have received the information along with the summons papers. On the day you arrive, you will go into a room downstairs with many others. They will call your name. They will ask you if there is any reason why you would not be able to serve. I was a single mom with a 9 yr old and worked full time with a "comission bases only" income. For me to be only getting (at that time) $30 a day was not going to cut it. That it would be a burden on my income. They would not accept that as a good enough excuse. I can't remember if at that time they assign you a court room to report to or if you go back to sit down till they have a court room for you. I think they did tell me to go directly up to a court room. If I'm not mistaken, all the people in that room were not called. They only call the amount they need for that day. I may be wrong...Once I was assigned to a court room, there were others in there. The two lawyers then call you and ask you some questions. If one likes your answer, they pick you for that case. I can't remember if the trial started that day or another day. If neither, you are either sent home or back down to the first room...

Our case was on a car accident. We all met in the morning in the jurors room. Got acquainted with the others. Then the case started. At lunch time they had settled the case so we were sent home, to wait again if you were to report in for the next day.

Once you are assigned to a case, it's interesting. I'm an avid fan of the TV show "Law & Order" so it was an experience to remember. It's only boring when you don't get called and sent home and start over again. Some people have been told they don't have to go back before the 2 week obligation is up.

I was summoned to go in on the 9th again so I will go through it before you. When my time is up or during my experience, I will email you along the way. Things may have changed since the last time I did it.

Have you decided on your transportation? Maybe your husband will be dropping you off and picking you up? I am going to take the bus. The public parking that they have suggested are all 2-4 blocks away and charge anywhere from $1 an hr to $3 a day. The latter is farther away from the court house. If you are in Nebraska, you will recognize the streets I mention. I have to transfer from my residential bus to the downtown bus so I am going to drive my car to the mall, park there and take the downtown bus from there. It drops me off about 1 1/2 block from the court house. It will only cost me $2.50 round trip.

Oh yes, as for lunch...there is an area in the court house that has a place that serves hot dogs and burgers. They may have improved since. OF course it will be expensive. I am planning to take a bag lunch. I'm sure there are restaurants and maybe fast food places but I'm not familiar with downtown since that last time, so to be on the safe side, on the first day you may want to bag a lunch and check out the area.

Good luck and I would love to hear from you once you have served...

Aloha, Y.

I am also up for jury duty in May for the second time in two years. Your experience depends on what trials are up and what court you are assigned to. You can be selected for a trial right away or not called at all. You could be an alternate. I would guess most courts have a website where you can read up on the specific court and find out about the jury system. Here, if the case is all but determined you can be held to stay late or over the weekend. This may be different in other places. I n larger courts tyou will want to take a book or something as there is a long waiting period. Here we call in every day as they know what cases will be up. Call the courthouse and ask questions. You will want flexible dependable day care set up.

I was called a couple years ago and one of my co-workers was just in the past couple weeks. Mostly it's not a big deal. The first day they give you stuff to read and you get to sit around a lot. IF the computer chooses you as a candidate, then you get to go sit in court, fill out some paper work and eventually be questioned by the attorneys. Most likely, one of them will choose not to have you and then you get to go sit with the jury pool again. They will then tell you if you need to come back the next day or if you will just need to call in twice a day to check your status. Obviously if neither attorney dismisses you, then you get to spend time sitting in court listening to a lot of facts. Probably the attorneys will come to an agreement before it's time for the jury to deliberate. There is of course the SMALL chance that you would be chosen for a sequestered jury in which case your husband would have to bring you some luggage and you'd get to stay at a hotel and have meals catered - while being under surveylance by deputies - a mini vacation from being MOM but would be rather stressful for everyone at the same time. Good luck to you!

BTW - neither I nor my coworker were selected and mostly we could just go about our days like usual.

Bring a book or something to do. It's alot of sitting and waiting. Even though you are summoned, does not mean that you are assigned to a case. You'll sit and wait until you are either assigned to a case, or sent home. VERY borning.

I was called for jury duty 2 weeks ago. I called ahead and got put on the "call in list". Not sure if your county has that (I'm in Hennepin). I had to call in every night and afternoon to see if they needed me. I never got called in at all because they had enough jurors show up to the courthouse. If you can get put on a call in list, that's the best. Difficult to make plans and would need to be able to find a sitter quickly if called in. Just another option to think about.

Hi S.,
I had my son close to 9 years ago. Right after he was born I got called for jury duty also. I did'nt know what to expect, but it was'nt that bad. They give you a time and day to show up at the court house. If I recall right, you either call that night or the next morning to see if you need to be there. When you do show up, they give you a number. When your number is called (which you go in a group) they ask you your name and what you do for a living and if you know any of the people that is in question or the judge or lawyers. If they want to you they keep you on. Lucky me I was chosen.lol. They let you know when to show up for court. I was there for 8 hours sitting in the jury box. We got a break( with sweetrolls,coffee.cookies) when we went back they made a deal with each other so our job was done. So, to say the least it is pretty boring along day. Good luck
L.

I was summoned in a different county, but I think the selection process is basically the same from county to county.

On the first day, and every subsequent day until you get assigned to a case, you sit waiting in a large room with several hundred other people under the watch of a court balif. Most government offices are open from 9 to 4:30 pm, so expect to be gone during that window of time everyday, whether you get assigned a case or not.

Unfortunately, there is no guarantee when or if you will get assigned a case. You have to report to the courthouse everyday until you are either assigned or dismissed by the Court. Your summons will post the window of time you are to report for duty. Usually its a one or two week block of days you have to report to the courthouse.

When you finally do get called for a case, you will be ushered to a court room with a large group of other potential jurors called to a particular case. Here, you will each be "interviewed" by prosecutors and defense attorneys and sometimes the Judge depending on the case.

The purpose is for the case attorneys to find the least biased and most fair jurors in the best interest of their prospective "clients". This process is called "Jury Selection" and can take up to a day or more depending on the case and what attorneys are looking for.

The good news is, as soon as both sides are done interviewing you, will know right away if you will be kept or dismissed. Once they whittle down the group from 50 to 12, and you are one of the 12 they will then disclose the case to you. If you are not chosen to be one of the 12 you get dismissed and go back to the pool, unless otherwise directed such as being released from duty altogether, or you get called or assigned to another case.

If you are chosen for a case, you must report to the courthouse everyday, probably sometime before 9am, until the day of "sentencing". In some bigger trials (criminal) jurors can not go home, and must stay in a hotel under the watch of a balif. This is done in lieu of a change of venue (relocation of a case to avoid jury bias) if there is particularly big media coverage so as to not "contaminate" the jury's decision.

Depending on whether you get assigned a criminal or civil case, the length of the actual trial can vary. Expect to be away from home for a "minimum" of one week. If you have a particlarly big trial (doesn't matter if its civil or criminal) you could be gone much longer. It's not unheard of being away for a month or more if the case is big enough. Remember the lengthy and drawn out O.J. Simpson deliberations? No joke, this sort of stuff happens everyday in courts everywhere.

Failure to report for jury duty is a no-no. If you can't report because of a schedule conflict or personal hardship, you must still report to the court. You will have to explain this to the Judge during jury selection, and hopefully you will be eliminated right away.

I'm not 100 percent sure if there are exceptions to this rule. If you really have a serious reason for not being able to do jury duty, you might be able to call ahead and "reschedule" for a later time. Don't quote me on this, rather you might want to call the "Court Administrators" office and they will let you know for sure.

And oh yeah, if this is any consolation, the county does pay a modest stipend for your time and trouble. So that's a nice extra if you don't wind up spending in gas or food.

I just finished a day at the court house. I was called for jury duty.

First of all, I hope you know how important jury service is. It's one of the most important checks that are built into our judicial system. Before you go to the court house, I would recommend checking out http://www.fija.org. FIJA - "Fully Informed Jury Association". It's a great organization - "FIJA is a non-profit organization aiming to inform all Americans about their rights, powers and responsibilties when serving as trial jurors."

Here's how my day went:

Bring something to do, I spent most of the day waiting.

We watched a video that explained the process, then waited.
They explained the 2 trials (briefly) that we could be selected for, then waited.
We filled out a questionaire, then waited.
They split us into 2 groups, 1 for each trial, then we left for lunch.
When we returned from lunch, we were sent to the court room for the trial that we were selected for.
Eventually, based on the attorneys choices, 18 of us were selected to begin the questioning. This went on for a couple hours. Some jurors were excused by the judge,based on their answers to questions. New jurors were selected from the pool, to replace them. Eventually, after all questions were asked, the attorneys & judge met and decided which jurors would be selected for the trail. I believe they selected 10 or 12.

The rest of us were excused. This trial started the next day.

I wouldn't be nervous, be excited. It's a very important job. Just remember one thing. If you are ever on trial, wouldn't you want your jurors to be Fully Informed about their duties? I don't believe that you will get all the information about your powers from the court, so please do a little research in advance.

One final note. Prohibition of alchohol was overturned by jurors that eventually decided that the law was a bad law! That's the power of a jury!

Good Luck - P.

I am a lawyer -- basically the first part is called voire dire, (literally in French to see to say), meaning the attorneys go through and try to decide how to pick from the pool of jurors. Some people they just dismiss out of hand for whatever reason, don't take it personally if they do not pick you; it means you are free! Then if you are still left in the pool they will ask you some general questions. Don't try to psyche out what you think they are trying to get you to say. Just answer honestly whatever they ask you. Then you may be picked, you may not. There are many, many arbitrary things about the process so honestly it is not a big deal one way or the other, except that if you don't get picked, you get to go home and maybe come back for another trial during your time period. But if you do get picked, just do your best and remember it's a privilege to be part of the best justice system on the planet.

I live in a small town so our's is a bit different then the ones I read in your reply. When I was called (a few times) everyone went and sat in the courtroom where it was explained to us what was expected if we were chosen. They asked if we were related to anyone in the law enforment or if we had other reasons we couldn't serve. The judge heard these and decided if it was reason enough to dismiss you from jury duty. They drew out a number of people, the others were able to go home. I was drawn only once. In that case we sat and listened to what the trial was about. This was about a young girl who's step father was accused of molesting her. We were asked different questions which we had to answer yes or no to. I was doing fine until the judge asked if we could concider the man innocent through out the trial until all the evidence was in, including through the girls testomony. This is where I couldn't answer. I finally said I could try. I was the first jurior that the defence asked to be removed. The procecuting attorney told me that I was the one he really wanted on the case. All in all, the man was found guilty and served his time.

There is nothing to be nervous about. You will want to take something to read. In Ohio I was called for Jury Duty three different times. Twice I was not picked. Once I was picked we went to trial that day and finished I believe we stayed till after 5 to finished so we would not have to come back the next day.
All three were great experiences. During the selection they will ask ya a few questions. Just answer them honestly and watch the wheels of justice turn.
Take care and don't worry.

I was called for the month of November. I had to go in twice & both times got on the short list for the selection. I had to sit through all of the questions from the lawyers and judge. I found that it you get picked for the selection, that the more questions you answer the more likely you will be dismissed from the trial.

It will take at least the entire morning for just the selection & more than likely if it is a civil or small criminal case you will begin immediatley after the jury selection is complete.

My best advice is to bring something to keep yourself busy. I have been called twice in the past 8 years. The first time, I sat in the waiting room from 8-4 the first day. The second day, I sat in the waiting room until about 2:30 pm where they released us and told us we didn't need to come back.

The second time, they seated me as a potential juror after about 3 hours of sitting in the waiting room. Then we all went into a courtroom, where the players and defendant polled us, asked us questions, and one by one seated the jury. I was not picked, and we went back to the waiting room. The second day was again, sitting in the waiting room until about 2pm, where we were all "set free".

Bring a book, pay your bills, bring a craft project but keep yourself busy -- the day is long. You won't likely be able to do that if you actually make it to the courtroom though. In Dakota County where I live, they do have cubicles with phones in the waiting room, so you can spread your stuff out (scrapbooking? Yeah!). They generally let you leave for an hour for lunch. They're pretty strict about coming and going, so don't be late, if they want to be nasty about it, they can fine you.

Good luck -- at least they won't call you again for 4 years after you serve.

S.

Did you know that you can postpone your service? If I were you, I would ask to postpone it until August or later, so that you can do it after your youngest is in school. That way your husband won't have to take off of work. In the slim chance that you do actually get picked for a case, it could last a few days, so you'll need to make plans for your son.

I served in Hennepin County. I was there for 6 or 7 days. Most of it was just waiting around. I was interviewed for 3 cases, and actually was picked for 1. The case I was on lasted 3 days.

The interviews can be a little intimidating. Depending upon the case, they may ask you some personal questions, like where you work, if you own a firearm, have you ever been injured in an auto accident.

During the interviews, we were always asked if being on jury duty was a hardship (i.e., daycare issues, unpaid time off of work, etc.). If anyone said "yes", they were excused from that particular case, but NOT from the rest of their service. (So, they still might have had to interview for another case. I think in HC at the time, jd service was 2 weeks long.)

My job still paid me while I was on jd, and the county gave us a stipend, I think something like $25/day to cover food and parking.

Don't worry--odds are it will be extremely boring!

I received my summons last spring - for 2 months that were completely unavailable. Well, I stressed about trying to find someone to take my son. By the time I said screw it and decided that I would bring him along (If they don't want kids there, they should provide daycare!) I called the number on the letter to see if I needed to come in and I was told that they didn't need me to go in.

Unfortunately in Sherburne County you don't know until 9am the day of if you are supposed to come in at 11am and then they get to keep you on hold for 2 months until your summons runs out.

I can't tell you what to expect, but I can tell you that I am so jealous! I know that most people look at jury duty as a chore and they hope to never be called and they curse the letter that arrives for them in the mail - but I have never been called and I CAN'T WAIT to be on a jury! What a fabulous experience you are going to have! Even the boring parts! Just the fact that you are involved in one of the most wonderful judicial systems and that you have a vital role to play in deciding what will happen to an individual - this is an exciting thing! Enjoy the experience for me!

The first time I was summoned, I responded (to the letter) that I was nursing my baby and was excused by mail. The second time I was summoned, I had to call in once a week to see if I was needed and I did end up going in to the courthouse for the question and answer period. I was excused becos I knew the parties involved. I was paid for the mileage to and from the courthouse.

If you are the main caregiver for your young child during the day, they will excuse you from jury duty.

I've served in the jury pool four times in my life. The first time I also served in Henn. Co. Minnesota. There, I sat all day for the first week in the jury pool room. The next three times here in my home county of Brookings, SD. Here our jury terms last one to two months. When a trial come along that needs a jury, they send out letters telling us that we need to appear for the question and answer period with the lawyers. This last time, I didn't even have to go in to the county seat so I just stayed at home and pestered my children and hubby.

I'm sure you've probably seen this but here is a "what to expect" website from Douglas County for jury duty:

http://www.18thjudicialdist.org/Douglas/douglasjury.htm

Be sure to bring something to read. It can be a long day if you don't. Jury selection will just include answering some questions to give the attorneys a chance to exclude you if they feel you may have some biases against their client. Just answer honestly. If you are chosen for a trial, most of them aren't very exciting and don't take very long. But there is always a chance you will not be picked too.

Don't be afraid. Its not that scary.

I am sure this was already mentioned, but I couldn't read all the responses you have gotten. Since you have a child you stay home with, you can ask to be excused from jury duty. Just contact them & let them know. You will have to provide a letter stating why you can't serve at this time. They will keep you on the 'list' to serve at another time (is what they told me, when I was in the same situation). Oh- and don't be nervous about doing jury duty- it was a great experience. They let you know everything you need to know.

I've worked in court for over 15 years and my first bit of advice is don't be nervous. Second, bring some good reading material as you'll be sitting around a lot. It's a lot of hurry up and wait. Third, dress in layers. You'll be herded from room to room and the temperature varies greatly in each room...some too hot, some freezing.
Make sure you bring cash and change for vending machines.
Don't stress about this. It's nothing major. Have a good time performing your civic duty!

ENjoy the chance to sit and do nothing! As a busy Mom, when was the last time you got to do that? Take a few bags full of busywork that you never have time to get to. Update your address book, calendar, sort photos,kids school papers,copy recipes, answer those letters to old friends, I even took mending!It's like a free day to get caught up on sedentary things.

S.,

If they know that you have a child at home to care for, you may just be excused. That is what happened to me.

Get there early and be prepared to sit and not do anything a lot. You will get asked questions to determine who they want to screen out. They asked our group questions like "do you know the defendent?" and "have you or any of your family or friends ever been arrested?" in an attempt to eliminate bias.

Don't be a nervous wreck. You are not the defendent. I have to say that the whole justice system lost considerable credibility in my mind when I saw how the jury process worked. I would not want to be tried by the people I was in that room with. And the security officer kept flirting with the defendent.

Good luck,
S.

I have been summoned twice and both times weren't bad. A lot of time the case settles out of court and you don't even have to go. If you do have to show for a case they will take you up to the court room and tell you about the case and then start picking a jury. They will release people that they think will be bias to their client. The one time I made it to the court room, I wasn't even picked to go for jury selection. I wouldn't worry about it. It's not that bad. Just think, if you do show up they have to pay you. Hope all goes well... don't stress about it.

I was summoned for jury duty. I tried like you know what to get out of it because I owned a store, I would've had to close my doors. I stresses majorly about this only to find out I was never needed! It's just a day that you are scheduled. A lot of times they settle out of court.

Hope that helps,

I wouldn't stress out until the day actually comes and then go from there.

J.