What should I know about serving on a jury?

Question

Today I received a jury summons in the mail, this will be my first time serving but I do not know anything about it. Can anyone tell me about their experience when they presented themselves in court? My boyfriend told me his experience but it wasn't very encouraging. He told me that this guy working in the court said he would have him arrested if he continued asking too many questions. Can they really do that? I'm afraid the people working for the court will be jerks, that is what I have heard from most people.

Answer 1

Jury service is an important civic duty.  Good for you for worrying about it.

The process varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction so the answers you get here may not apply to your situation.

Anyway, the jury summons you received may state on it the type of jury service for which you are being summonsed (i.e. civil, criminal trial, grand jury) but it may not.  It will state the court (state or federal).  Regardless, the process will be somewhat similar.

You will probably sit in a big room for a while with all the other potential jurors.  Every now and then, the clerks will pull out names at random for voir dire -- the process of selecting a jury for an individual case.  The judge and the lawyers will have the chance to ask the potential jurors questions.  The idea is to get a fair jury for any particular case.   (Of course, the lawyers want jurors that may favor their side).

Just answer the questions honestly and do not be insulted if you're not picked.  Each side gets a certain number of peremptory challenges to potential jurors -- i.e. they can kick you off for no reason at all.  (I just don't want her -- she posts to Yahoo Answers).  Also, each side gets an unlimited number of challenges "for cause" (i.e. she told me that she knew my client and thought he was a liar).  You will not know why you did not get picked.

Service is important; take it seriously.  There is no reason to be scared.

And no, they will not throw someone in jail for asking questions.  If the court staff is rude, just deal with it.  That would suck, but no big deal.

Answer 2

I never look forward to jury duty because I have to get up early and it is dead boring.  The food in the cafeteria is awful as well.  Anyway, it is generally lots of waiting.  You fill out your juror info form and turn it in.  Sit down and wait.  Usually at this point they show you a short video about jury duty.  Wait some more until your number is called. Then you go to the hallway outside the court room and wait again.  Then you get seated in the court room and asked questions as a group.  This is called voir dire.  Based on your answers, the attorneys decide whether or not to strike you from their jury pool.  I've been told if you do a lot of talking (ie. asking questions or voicing strong opinions)  you are less likely to be chosen for the jury.  Personally I tend to be quiet person and I have served on a jury twice already.

I recommend you bring a book, iPod, PSP, magazine, knitting or something to entertain you during the waiting part.  And a protein bar in case you don't get a break for lunch or hate the cafe as much as I do.  Take some change for the vending machine in case you need some peanut M&Ms.  A light jacket might be in order because those places always seem to be chilly.  There is usually a dress code; my summons says no shorts and tank tops.

Also, you should check the back of the form to see if you qualify for any exemptions.  Below is a link to the Dallas County (Texas)  jury duty FAQ.

Answer 3

Well, first of all the prosecuting attorney or the judge might ask the jury if they had any experiences like the case. Confusing? Here's an example when I saw a court case.

A lady was being accused of drunk driving and she had all of these health issues. She drank alcohol with a medicine and she wasn't supposed too. Her throat clogged up and she drove herself to the hospital. She blames it on her asthma.

The prosecuting attorney asked the jury if they have ever had and experience with asthma. Some of them had asthma or knew someone who did. Then they were kicked out of the court room, because they may feel sorry or something for they lady. Hopefully this helped.