Jury duty... 16 weeks pregnant?

Question

I have been selected for Federal jury duty. This is where you can get on to long trials from what I've heard. I have so many different obgyn appointments that I don't see how I could do a long trial. Have you had to do jury duty while pregnant? Will they just excuse me?

Answer 1

All you have to do is be up front w/ them...at the end of the voir dir (sp) they will say if anyone has a specific reason they feel can keep them from performing their duty then you can tell the judge in private....then you just let the judge know that you are 16 wks pregnant and have a few drs appt that you have to keep....but just listen to the entire thing b/c it may not be a lengthy trial and may not matter....

Answer 2

Get a note from your doctor outlining the needed appointments and expected due date. Take that with you when you go to jury duty and show them the letter. Depending on the letter and the needs of the court you may be excused or you may be assigned to a trial that they do not expect will interfere with your medical appointments.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Just write a note explaining your situation.  It will work out.  Even if they do not excuse you, can you imagine a prosecutor or defense attorney agreeing to you serving on a long trial with the likelyhood your medical condition will cause you miss the end?  They do not want interruptions!!

Good luck!

Answer 4

You should go and stop making excuses.  It is your duty and privilege to serve.  Work around the problems.

Answer 5

If they don't, tell them you're a racist.

Answer 6

JUST EXPLAIN TO THE JUDGE AND THEY WILL EXCUSE YOU

Answer 7

usually you can schedule around the court times but in you're case  you might be able to get a rain check and come back next year

if you get called in (and that's a big if) you are still unlikely to actually serve on a jury, so wait see if you get picked and then (odds are you wont get that far) then maybe you can talk to the court administer to make sure you're accommodated

they really do seem to go out of their way (especially judges)to treat juries really well, remember they want you to be happy with the service you're performing and both sides of the case are trying to win you're vote!

when i did it a few years ago i was really apprehensive, especially after i actually got picked for an interview, then i actaully got picked to be on the jury!

but they treated us like we were the most important people in the room, was very cool, id do it again in a heartbeat

you never actually sat more than a couple hours at a time and you were always allowed to ask for a break if needed (neither the plaintiffs or prosecuters have that power! LOL)

Answer 8

Most trials are only a couple of days...it's rather unlikely that you would get assigned to one of these high-profile cases that take weeks or months.  In that case, the judge would consider your pregnancy...but for only a couple of days when you're at 4 months?  It's no big deal.

Answer 9

16 weeks is way too early to be worried about jury service. Most trials last any where from a few days to a few weeks. The long trials are rare.