Exemptions based on financial need are extremely rare, even if you’re facing serious challenges. Don’t count on the court’s taking financial need into consideration. Don’t lie about your financial situation. Lying to a court is called perjury. It’s a felony. You could also be charged with obstruction of justice.
For example, you might say that you are quite sick, going out of town, studying for the bar, or planning on joining the military. Any acceptable excuse will likely set your next jury summons back at least a year. If you have young children, consider using them as an excuse. You would have to convince the court that you cannot arrange for day-care or a babysitter. [4] X Research source
Request that your jury duty be rescheduled for your next break (winter, spring, summer). The call center can authorize this even if you have gone beyond the one-year postponement limit. They will say that it will be your final postponement. In most cases, missed student work can be made up, but not missed lessons and lectures. Some states will even exempt students enrolled in online classes.
If you have a medical procedure scheduled in the next two weeks, let the judge know. You may be excused to reschedule jury duty. Under some state law you will be considered to have fulfilled your duty. When you return to reschedule your jury service, they will hand you a piece of paper certifying that you have completed it. Be completely truthful. If they catch you lying about your circumstances, you could face a possible 20 days in jail.
If the concept of proof beyond a reasonable doubt seems a bit fuzzy, that may work in your favor. How much doubt is reasonable? Are you supposed to be 99% certain? 99. 99%? You might decide that you could never vote to convict someone of a crime unless there were no doubt whatsoever about their guilt. If you tell this to the court, the prosecuting attorney may want to dismiss you. Perhaps you believe that the great majority of people arrested for crimes are guilty. After all, the prosecutor wouldn’t file charges unless he was very sure, right? So at this stage of the process, the defendant is probably guilty. Even so, you can say, you’ll just pretend the defendant is innocent until the trial is over. If you tell that to the court, the defense attorney may want to dismiss you. Another line of reasoning: police officers are better witnesses than the average person. They’ve trained to be more observant than most people. They have a lot of experience with crime and giving testimony. In addition, they must have a high moral standard if they were hired as police officers. The defense team won’t like this. Consider this: defendants often don’t testify on their own behalf. How can a person judge a case without hearing from the accused. If he/she can’t even look the jury in the eye and declare their innocence, that looks pretty guilty. Perhaps you’re not a confrontational person. If you’re in the minority, maybe you cave in to the majority pretty easily. Characterizing yourself this way could lead an attorney to dismiss you. Consider this line of reasoning if it applies to you: “I was the victim of a crime. They never caught the guy. I’m angry about that. The system doesn’t work. " The defense may not like hearing this. My friend/family member is a police officer/prosecutor/defense attorney. We talk about a lot of his cases. That guy sure is opinionated. One side or the other may not like hearing this. “The defendant is about the same age as my son. My son has been in a little trouble himself. " The prosecution may not like this.
Many jurisdictions bar lawyers, judges, and police officers from jury duty. They consider these people too informed on the subject to be effective jurors. [8] X Research source Similarly, doctors are almost always excused from malpractice cases, bankers from embezzlement cases, etc. It is not, however, unheard-of for a sitting judge to be seated as a juror.
Ask the judge if he/she would have convicted Harriet Tubman for violating the federal Fugitive Slave Laws. Was her role in the Underground Railroad for escaped slaves punishable? Would the judge have convicted Rosa Parks for violating the segregation laws in Montgomery, Alabama? Was her refusal to move to the back of the bus when the bus driver told her to give up her seat to a white passenger punishable? The judge might say that he/she would have instructed juries to convict these women because “the law is the law. " You should have a response prepared for that: “Blind obedience wasn’t accepted as a defense during the War Crimes Tribunal at Nuremberg. Many Nazis claimed that they were just “following orders. " Read about cases that demonstrate the power of jury nullification. Recommended cases include State of Georgia v. Brailsford, 3 U. S. 1, 4 (1794); U. S. v. Moylan, 417 F. 2d 1002 (4th Cir. 1969); United States v. Dougherty, 473 F. 2d 1113; United States v. Wilson, 629 F. 2d 439, 443 (6th Cir. 1980); US v. Krzyske, 836 F. 2d 1013 - Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit 1988; and U. S. v. Thomas No. 95-1337 (2nd Cir. 5-20-97).
