How to Survive Jury Duty

Jury duty...oh boy

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• patience
• impartiality
• a good book

1. If you are selected for jury duty you will most likely have to endure 2 weeks of sitting in the various rooms in your courthouse. Columbus, OH, where I live, apparently has the busiest courthouse in Ohio and I will picked first day to be on a jury. Jurors first have to go through a process called a "voir dire" which is where the two attorneys ask all the possible jurors a series of questions pertaining to the case. Out of the 24 or so jurors (there were that many in my group, anyway) they will pick the ones they find most impartial towards the case.

2. Impartiality is the biggest thing the attorneys look at. If the case involves firearms they will ask you if you have had any prolonged exposure to firearms, whether or not you own them, for what purposes...etc. I had no problem being impartial because I have never been around guns my entire life. They choose the most impartial people for the case.

3. As a juror, you will need to be very patient. The voir dire process can last for hours and after the voir dire is over, and the jury selection is chosen, you still have the entire case to sit through and pay attention during.

4. You will have a lot of down time (i.e. long lunch breaks, semi-frequent recesses), so bring a book. I read 1 book per day I was in jury duty. I guess I read quickly, but you still have an awful lot of non-jurybox time. Try and make friends as well, you'll be stuck with your fellow jurors until your case is over, and even then you'll be with them the entire two weeks.

5. Once your case is over(all the witnesses have been called and questioned, the attorneys have said their closing statements), you will deliberate with the other members of the jury. This is the thing I find so hard to do. I can't get over the fact that I have to be part of a random group of people that has to decide someone's fate. It just doesn't feel right...
   
   Regardless, after you deliberate and if it isn't the end of your 2-week summons, you will get thrown back into the jury pool and await your next possible case.

Tips & Warnings

• apparently there is a dress code, don't do what i did and walk into the courthouse wearing muddy jeans, dilapidated sandals and a grungy t-shirt you sleep in. everyone keeps telling me it's "business-casual." well, i don't own anything that would be considered business casual, but i've been trying my best.

[shannonny]

on 10/7/2008 You are such a nice sincere person! You tempt me at every step to misbehave--tell them I love guns when I can get my hands on them, rant about people groups I hate, etc. In all seriousness, a terrific article.

[beyond]

on 7/7/2008 muddy jeans and dilapidated sandals eh?