Why do so many people consider it a chore to serve on a jury?

Question

Why do so many people consider it a chore to serve on a jury?

Answer 1

they've never been a defendent?

esp. a defendent in a kangaroo court.

Answer 2

well- because the first time I served I was chosen to be on the jury- It was a total eye opener.  I would never want a group of my peers deciding my fate..total BS...plus it shows you how far the law goes...some of these trials are pure c**p...

All in all its not something I like at all..but everyone is different.  I guess it all depends on your experince with it.

Answer 3

I'd love to do it, never been selected. My Dad has done it 3 times, he refused on the 4th occasion as he was under the impression you couldn't be called that many times.

Answer 4

not all employers pay you so your missing out on wages.

many cases are dull

they drag on

you get little expenses

its a huge responsibility to determine innocence/guilt.

Answer 5

most as the money you get covers a coffee and your bus fare.

Answer 6

It takes up considerable time and sometimes it is difficult to organise time off work.   It is also a considerable responsibility and can be very stressful.  Imagine how you would feel if the person on trial was wrongfully convicted and you had been on the jury!

On the plus side, our justice system would fall apart if no one was willing to do it!

Answer 7

It doesn't put food on the table.

Answer 8

i was foreman on a murder trial and thought it was great it lasted 5 weeks

Answer 9

It is a chore.  You lose money.  You get pushed around all day.  In my county, the chairs are left over from the 19th century.  Many of the cases in civil court are totally absurd.  Want more reasons?

Answer 10

Because the technicalities of law are mind-numbingly boring, and serving on a jury can mean taking a great deal of time away from work, without compensation. Either you have to burn your vacation time, or live on the 8 dollars a day they give you for lunch.

Answer 11

not just boring.....sick of the  criminal has all of the rights, what about the victim!

Answer 12

I don't know. I looked forward to my jury duty and had a reasonably good time. Of course, I had a really decent judge and nice people on the jury and a rather insignificant case. If the judge had been difficult, or the people serving with me were a problem, or if it had been a bigger case, it might have been different. I prefer not to go now because the courthouse is so far away, but I would if I had to.

Answer 13

because so many people in this country are lazy and they do not want to do anything for their country.

Answer 14

dunno. i wish i get picked!

i need the cash.

Answer 15

the call always comes at the worst times.

Answer 16

I would consider it a chore simply because I would not be paid whilst serving.  Otherwise, I am all in favor of carrying out an important civic duty.  The trouble is that, as previously noted, the jury pool is skewed.  You get those who can afford to take time off work and those who, for whatever reason, are not in work.  I would suggest that leaves an awful lot of the population under-represented on juries.

I am British now living in the USA and I was amazed that you do not get paid lost wages to sit on a jury or, at least, a median amount that represents a wage.

Answer 17

what have you done doctor....what court shalll we expect to see you in this time?

Answer 18

Because it is

A) Time consuming.  People think they don't have the time, because their priorities are skewed.

B) Because it doesn't pay well.  Most people say that to serve means they would lose money, and that would cause a 'hardship'.

C) Because they are apathatetic.  They don't care about their community, and their place and duty in it.

D) They are selfish.  Unless they have ever had to go thru a court proceeding as either a plaintiff or a defendant, they never realize how important having a good and fair jury really is.

I am sure there are a few more points out there that I am missing....but this is basically what I feel it is.

I too used to duck out of my jury duty.  But this year I gave in to my curiosity and went when I was summoned.  Actually enjoyed it.  Got a chance to see, and meet a number of new people....got a first hand glimpse at how the system is set up to work,...made some extra money, since I don't work right now. (actually since I had to pay for cab fare to the courthouse, and it came out to a dollar more round trip then what they were paying me, I actually lost money) but the things I learned were really interesting.

Sadly, once I got involved in it, I actually was hoping that I would be chosen....(being sopeonaed doesn't mean you will get picked)... when I finally got called, it turned out I wasn't fit for that particular case..was a rape case, and I was probably excused on the basis that I have been a victim.

What mattered to me was, I got the feeling that I was actually participating in "DOING" something positive for the comunity in which I live.

Would I do it again? You bet.

Answer 19

There are other things to do like working or going to school.

Answer 20

omg i love to do that!! it would be like being in an episode of boston legal!!

i want jury duty!

Answer 21

Because the majority of cases are mindnumbingly boring and the result is a foregone conclusion.

Answer 22

Because they don't understand what's going on most of the time so find it boring.

Answer 23

because they don't have to fight to stay awake whole the lawyers drool on and on!

Answer 24

Last time I had it, I was paid $6 and it cost me $10 to park,,,do the math.

Answer 25

never done it but I suppose it puts their routine out even though (i think ) they get paid for it.

And we all know that little johnny will get a mediocre sentence and money and holiday for beating up and raping a pensioner so why bother

Answer 26

I got called once and was really excited about it...until I got there.  They herded us into a big room with very uncomfortable chairs.  There were only a limited number of places that we could go to on the floor as we were all waiting to be called.  They only called out numbers one time and mine wasn't one of them.  It was a complete waste of a day.  Even a boring trial would have been better than that.

Answer 27

The justice system has proven to be more and more of a joke with each passing year.

Answer 28

Most people do not get paid for Jury duty, and unlike what you see on TV, rarely is a case gong to garner enough attention so you can write a book to boost your earnings.

Additionally, courts are usually in the Civic center of a city, this frequently is where the heaviest traffic is encountered, making it truly a chore to get there and get home.

I think our Jury system is antiquated, it is time to update it. I have two different Ideas for Jury duty

1) Dr's have to do an internship so why not lawyers. Have everyone who wants to be a lawyer, serve a year or two as a juror. you can still have the same system where the lawyers involved in the caste can interview the jurors and choose or reject who they will.

But by having law students serve it provides two functions,

a) they have a better understanding of reasonable doubt than the average person and are m ore likely to be impartial when it comes to strictly weighing the evidence.

b) it allows them to see what the court is like from the other end of the spectrum, thus it may give them a better understanding of the court system in general.

2) We could have professional jurors. People trained to understand the concepts and to be impartial.

The argument that you are tried by a jury of your peers is as valid with either of these models as it is today. Because there is no way you can convince me the OJ, Robert Blake and Michael Jackson were tried by a jury of their peers.

Answer 29

I've often wondered this.

I'd love to be called up for jury service.

Sadly, I wouldn't be able to do it as I'm a full time carer.

Answer 30

Because of some of the morons who join you in this service.

If they saw a gunmen robbing someone and could fully identify the criminal, they could still be led into a non-guilty decision by weak brained, do-gooder, politically correct idiots on the same jury.

Answer 31

Let me tell you what choice do we have? If we didn't have our system that we have now, you would be judged by, not people of your piers but professional jurors, ones that don't care about anything but themselves.  A professional jury would hand out guilty or innocent verdicts according to how much you paid THEM!  So do your duty and serve someday it could be YOU!

Sorry but I have to add what a bunch of:

CRY BABIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!...