Why is jury duty not considered a form of slavery?

Question

I mean why are we required to go and work against our will? Isn't that why we have the thirteenth amendment to the constitution? It seems to me that people that don't want to do jury duty should not suffer any consequences for not showing up. If they really don't want to do it then to me it seems that if you force them then you are making do slave labour. Namely you are forcing them to make a legal decision against their will. Maybe someone who has legal experience can explain to me how this works.

Answer 1

Jury Duty is cool

I got paid from work and from the court. All I did was read a book all week

Answer 2

Tell it to the judge and don't pick up the soap in your new crib!

Answer 3

People need a jury of their peers.

Answer 4

First, you are paid for jury duty.  Second, other provisions of the constitution create the right to have cases resolved by an impartial jury of your peers.  As such, to the extent that jury duty could be considered slavery, it would involve the resolution of a conflict between constitutional provisions.  Third, the framers of the Thirteenth Amendment did not consider jury duty (or militia duty for that matter, which was also mandatory at the time) to be slavery or involuntary servitude.

Answer 5

I suppose you would rather give the government full power to decide your guilt or innocence. Some people should  just live in fascist countries where the government does all their thinking for them. They might be happier.

Answer 6

i dont have legal experience, but i wouldnt consider being paid to sit in a court room and decide a guilty or not guilty verdict, is the same as working your hands to the bone, for slave owners who beat and rape you, all hours of the day, and being pulled out of your homeland, not to mention, how many people who volunteer for jury duty? not many im sure, ive been sent a jury duty notification once a year since ive been in the military, if i lived in my hometown i would do it, but im not, so i cant, but thats the way our law system is built, you are judged by a jury of your peers, so they have random people do jury duty, its definately not slavery.

Answer 7

It's not considered a form of slavery because

1. you aren't captured, born into it, or purchased

2. you get paid for jury service

3. you can get out of jury duty if you have the right excuse

Being on a jury is your civic duty, we all know that.  But, a question for you....wouldn't you rather have a jury of your peers judging you if God forbid you were in a legal jam of any kind........or would you rather some judge decide your fate all on their own?

Answer 8

because you get paid.

i guess not everyone views civic participation as a bad thing...

Answer 9

I suppose it's because they pay you, but I do get your point. I've been called to jury duty six times, served on two juries and spent six MONTHS on a federal grand jury and yet I still got another notice to serve last month.  All of this while not ever knowing a single person or relative who EVER had to served on a jury.

At one time they got the names from voting records so people stopped voting to get their names off the rolls, but now they also use public utility bill address lists to get names so that you can't get away with not serving because you don't vote.   b******s!

Considering that more people voted in the finals of American Idol than voted in the last presidential election,  I'm not too sure I'd want my fate decided by a jury of my peers.

Answer 10

Perfect timing, I just got a jury summons this week.  I don't know that I would go so far as calling it slavery, but I do think it's c**p that it is mandatory.  And as far as getting paid for it, whoop-de-do.  $40.00 a day is not exactly getting paid, that's less than minimum wage.  Some employers pay you, but mine does not.  I have to waste personal and vacation time on it.

Answer 11

Every time the government passes a law it takes away some amount of liberty, whether it's creating a speed limit, making us pay sales tax etc.  The loss of liberty from having to do jury duty is no different, really.  Jury duty is not slavery because it is not demeaning and does not caste a social stigma on you.  Under the law, jury duty is not work.  Before the Thirteenth Amendment was passed (there is no way the ratifiers of the 13th thought jury duty was slavery), the Sixth Amendment in the Bill of Rights entitled someone to a jury trial in a criminal case.  The Constitution itself admired jurors and thought that a jury system was the fairest way to administer justice.  So blame the founders for putting so much faith in jurors.

Answer 12

I would rather sentence a criminal within a group than have one man decide another man's punishment...it seems more justified, if we must judge a criminal that we do it as a jury of peers. Remember the saying that two heads are better than one...well there ya go..that's my opinion

and if your talking about being taken against your will then what about the draft during vietnam, I personally think that is a much bigger issue...I'm NOT talking about the draft in the world war's because those were wars worth fighting for, which were honorable

Answer 13

Are you SERIOUSLY comparing sitting in a jury box to picking cotton and being raped by a slave master?  Good Lord!!

Answer 14

It is as close as a legal system can get to being unbiased and honest.

Answer 15

Spending the time to appear to be considered for jury duty is one of the responsibilities you take on in accepting your constitutional right to vote.  In the larger context, the assumption is that if you are one who moves to take advantage of one aspect of your constitutional rights, you must be willing to assist your fellow citizen with taking advantage of their constitutional rights...so, if you accept the right to vote, you will help someone constitute a jury of their peers.

Of course, the answer to avoiding being selected for jury duty is simple...if the judge asks can you abide by his/her instructions rather than rule on your biases, say no.  In criminal cases, say that you believe that anarchy is the appropriate way of society, in which case the prosecutor will move to strike you from the jury every time.  If you are called for a civil case, say that businesses have an obligation to give back to the poor and if they refuse, the court should be a means to redistribute wealth.  The defense will move to strike you from the jury every time.  Or, if you don't want to spend the time to be called at all, don't register to vote, in which case you will not be on the roles to be called for jury duty.