Jury Duty Questions

[bowtieguy]

i've been summoned yet AGAIN! this time there are unusual circumstances however...

i typically try to get out of it because i actually lose a SIGNIFICANT amount of money serving. my employer pays, but only for 8 hours(no overtime or bonus). i've come to realize that when an excuse is granted, the court puts your name back into the rotation.

well, this time they've called me on my day off. so, do i not claim employer wages? maybe they'll be more likely to excuse me if THEY(the county) have to pay. but, their pay is not worth much or my time. do i ask my employer for a different day off? don't think my boss would be too thrilled. do i just go serve to secure no loss of wages?

my last name starts w/ "A", so i always end up at least staying the entire day, if not serving on a jury. i thought about trying to get excused, and hope for a different day when my time comes again.

you guys know how i begrudge govt and it REALLY irritates me when an excuse is not granted. i always explain that my family depends on my income alone, and that each day served would truly hurt us financially. besides, i know people that would LOVE to get out of the daily grind to serve in a/c all day!

[GasSavers_BEEF]

I am actually in jury duty this week. it is my first time. I actually got chosen as a juror. they say it should only last about 2 days. that means I'll be done on wednesd.ay or so. it took an entire day almost to chose the jury. one thing that I found that almost automatically got people out of it was to say that it was against their religious or cultural beliefs to put someone in judgement. that got them dismissed almost immediately. not sure if you could claim this to begin with but it isn't a card I was willing to pull out

I kind of feel that we are obligated to do this. one other juror actually said "where would we be if we weren't here?" he meant as a country, not individually. some day, I may be in the defendant seat and I hope that people will look at my situation with a nonbiased and open mind and not thinking of what else they could be doing that day as my future may lie in their hands. I don't have anything to hide and though I don't think I would ever be in that situation but nobody knows the future. anyone can be accused.

here is my wonderful (and official) juror's badge. I could make this myself in about 5 minutes (and most of that is because I need to get it laminated).

[bowtieguy]

totally w/ ya Beef. some day, when my kids are grown and money is not so much an issue, i'll proudly serve. you and i both have a calling to be entirely honest among other things, but there is something to be said of self preservation.

each day i serve, i stand to lose a MINIMUM of $80(busy days would be more). i understand, as you do, that most lower court trials last only a day or two. however, in the court system you never know for sure.

i think i'll honestly explain my situation, and that i might at the very least be distracted as an effective juror. since i don't drink and have never used drugs, that would perhaps be a biased POV in regard to being excused. that's based on the premise that most cases involve those issues, however.

[GasSavers_BEEF]

the most I have ever made in a single day at work was $501.86 before taxes. that was a long day and involved a good bit of overtime.

I stand to lose a bit from this too. I am not self employed and I will admit that the $12 per day that the court gives you isn't hitting on much. my work place gives me 8 hours of pay for all the days that I serve so it isn't that big of a deal for me.

there is a certain level of capitol that one needs to keep in the bank to cushion yourself for unforseen events. seriously I would think that $80 wouldn't knock you down that far. I just burnt about $50 working on my front bumper and then ripped it all off as it turned out badly.

a book that I would recomend.
Rx for Worry: A THANKFUL HEART by James P. Gills, M.D.
I got this book many many years ago but started reading it again because someone told me that I would need something to do during my breaks at court.

I understand that finances get tight and (if memory serves me well) you have 2 girls at the house. I can't really say that I would do any different. for me, all I am giving up is some vacation time as I need to pick up my daughter early on friday and I would have used extra time during the week to cover any short time on friday.

honesty is always the best way.

[FrugalFloyd]

I used to get a jury summons every 2 years, like clockwork. Happened in three different states, over dozens of years, and I never actually served until the last time.

Worst was a murder/torture trial projected to last 6 weeks. It was a change of venue case, too, because of the publicity surrounding the case. They selected 50 people for the jury pool, and wanted 12 jurors and 12 alternates. I was 48th in the pool before they finally got their jury. If I'd been selected, I'd have had to serve 6 weeks for $3/day (my employer would have paid my salary), would have had to listen to all the testimony, and wouldn't have had a vote, because I'd have been the last alternate juror.

The one time I did serve, I didn't feel good about it. Defendant was African-American, accused of disobeying a police order. The cop claimed the defendant hit his Crown Vic's mirror as he walked by the cop car. Cop supposedly thought his mirror was broken, so he ordered the guy to stop, but he didn't. Other jurors thought it was an open and shut case. I knew Crown Vic mirrors fold when hit, and don't break (checked it in the parking lot during lunch break). I figured the cop made up the story, but the defense attorney never brought up any defense questioning the cop's right to make the order. So in the end, I had to agree with the rest of the jury.

About 10 years ago, I moved out of state for a couple of years, and the jury system lost me. The new tenants must have told them I didn't live here any more. I haven't been called for jury duty since.

[bowtieguy]

Sentra,

your example is exactly what i fear. if i were stuck on a jury for 6 weeks, it would wipe out my savings, if not ruin me financially.

i would no doubt HAVE to site hardship and/or anxiety to be removed. i'm thinking 6 weeks @ $400 per week...could really be closer to $3k than $2400!

[bobc455]

BTG, if I was taken to court, I would want someone rational and logical like yourself sitting on the jury. Goodness knows there are too many kooks in this world that I would NOT want.

-BC

[FrugalFloyd]

Actually, if I were a defendant, I'd worry about BTG's lack of logic, although I'd welcome his skepticism on a jury.

[bowtieguy]

Originally Posted by SentraSE-R

...I'd worry about BTG's lack of logic...

it's kinda funny how we REALLY don't know each other here, yet we sometimes make judgments based on posts/views alone.

i CLEARLY and HONESTLY evaluate myself regularly. i do have weaknesses, but none are ANYTHING related to logic. i have a reputation w/ friends and co-workers such that my opinion is OFTEN sought.

so please keep your PERCEIVED views in regard to character to yourself, especially those that are negative. we've discussed this and the subsequent loss of members before.

[Ford Man]

I use to get called to jury duty every 2-3 years, but never had to serve as a juror. The last time I was called for jury duty was after I had my accident that caused my disability so I was excused for medical reasons. At that time I could barely sit or stand for more than 10-15 at time. I was never fond of the idea of having to serve, but would have if I had been selected. Now I couldn't sit for several hours a day because of my back injury. I wouldn't make a very good juror now anyway, because my pain level interferes with my concentration.