when you are ask to appear for jury service what exactly does this mean?

Question

I received a letter from court asking me to attend jury service, but is my first time so i'm kind of nervous. What should I expect?

I live in L.A., California.

Answer 1

Los Angeles County uses a "one day/one trial" system. What you got is probably the initial screening form. You just fill that out and send it back in. You will later get a jury summons (unless that is what you have now). It will have your juror number and a telephone number for you to call each day for about a week. When you call you will be told whether or not you need to report to the court house the next day. (The court house is probably either downtown or near your home.)

On the day you report, you will go to a jury assembly room, with lots of other folks. (This is where you bring your book to read.) Many people will be asked to go to court rooms for jury selection. Many will not be called. If you are not called, you go home at the end of the day and your jury service is done. (You cannot be summoned for a year afterwards.) If you are sent to a courtroom, and then selected for the jury, you serve until that case is over.

There is really nothing to be nervous about. The people who run the system try to keep everybody informed and comfortable, and the jury is, of course, one of the bedrocks of our democracy. (And the stick is that if you don't show up, you can be arrested--and that is actually happening these days.)

Answer 2

Most likely you will spend a lot of time sitting around and odds are pretty good that you won't actually be part of the jury for a case.
Though if you happen to be selected as a jury member, I will just say to remember that you have the ability to rule on the facts and the law of whatever the case is. Basically, you can disregard the judges instructions regarding the law.

A silly hypothetical example, the case is against someone that exited a building through the door clearly marked as "entry only - do not exit" and thus broke the law against doing so. Well this law seems to serve no legitimate purpose (as is the case with many actual laws) so the jury can rule not guilty simply based on the fact that they don't agree with the law.
Unfortunately, this doesn't change the stupid law, although I would think that if something like this happened enough with regards to one that it may get the attention of legislators.
Then again probably not... oh bother... there I go being optimistic again.

Included in the sources below is a link to LA Superior Court jury information and a site with general jury duty info.

As the U.S. Court of Appeals for District of Columbia has
acknowledged, that the jury has "...an unviewable and unreversible
power...to acquit in disregard of the instructions on the law given
by the trial judge." U.S. v. Dougherty, 473 F.2d 1113, 1139
(1972).

We recognize, as appellants urge, the undisputed power of the
jury to acquit, even if its verdict is contrary to the law as given
by the judge, and contrary to evidence. This is a power that must
exist as long as we adhere to the general verdict in criminal
cases, for the courts cannot search the minds of jurors to find the
basis upon which they judge. If the jury feels that the law under
which the defendant is accused is unjust, or that exigent
circumstances justified the actions of the accused, or for any
reason which appeals to their logic or passion, the jury has the
power to acquit,, and the courts must abide by the decision. U.S.
v. Moylan, 417 F.2d, 1002, 1006(1969).

Answer 3

I don't live in LA, so it may be different there, but the way it works in NJ is that you are entered into a juror "pool" and assigned a juror #. You along with a few hundred others, show up to the court the days you have been told to, usually for 5 days. You usually fill out a questionnaire. You wait in a room, and juror #'s are called. Those potential jurors then go into the court room, where the judge and attorneys for the case are waiting. Of the jurors called into the court room, 12 at a time are then asked to move to the jury box. The case is explained and a list of potential witnesses is read. Jurors are then asked if there is any reason they can't serve, and if they know any of the witnesses or any of the parties in the case. The lawyers can ask questions of potential jurors and also review a questionaire they may have filled out. Lawyers can ask that jurors be excused for cause, without limit, or for no reason at all to a certain limit.

Chances are that you will not be selected to sit on the jury, and you will just go home. If you are selected then you will have to listen to the case and render a verdict along with the other 11 jurors. They will tell you about how long the trial should last, so if you have a conflict in your schedule you can let them know before the trial and be excused.

It is also possible that there is a callin number that you call each morning and it will give you a range of juror numbers that must come in that day. If yours is in the range, you go in. If not, then you don't.

It is an important civic responsiblity of US citizens to serve on a jury when called to do so, so you should do it if at all possible. You will likely be paid a small amount for your time, and may have fun if it's an interesting case. It likely will be a good experience for you. Nothing to be afraid of.

Answer 4

Congratulations! Jury duty is one of the most wrongly maligned, yet easy to fulfill civic duties.

I have never tried to get out of jury duty. Why? I get paid by the government, paid by my employers and it's a nice break from the day-to-day grind. But more than anything, you're taking part in the system and doing your civic duty.

Bring a good book because you'll be doing a lot of sitting around, waiting to be called. You may even want to go sit in on a trial before your actual jury service - I've sat in on lots of interesting cases including several murder trials.

Also, you're not being "asked" to appear, you're being directed to appear. It is illegal to not show up for jury duty as directed. It's a crime (for which you'll be given every chance to make amends if you don't go), but worse, it places an unnecessary burden on the legal system.

The only thing that sucks about jury duty is if you're assigned to a boring case!

Answer 5

You have been selected from a huge pool of folks. Your name came up in the driver's license database I imagine. Just be on time; take a book to read; be prepared for some long winded speech from a judge on how your presence there is essential and HOPE you dont get selected for a jury. If you are selected as a petit juror you might find yourself there the next day but it is rare. Petit jurors are questioned in front of the (criminal) and now that is SCARY. The lawyers select 12 or 14 out of fifty potential jurors, so your odds of being selected are pretty slim.

Answer 6

There is a good chance that you will not have to even serve on a jury.
What they do initially is get what is called a jury pool.
The prosecutor and defense attny. have so many picks of 12 jurors and 2 alternates.
If you don't want to serve and are asked questions, just act incompetent.
If you want to serve, don't act to anxious or they may think you have an agenda.
It's actually a good learning experience and your employer is required by law to let you have time off.

Answer 7

It means you are a registered voter and will have to appear before a judge to see if you are qualified to sit on a jury

Answer 8

they bring you in for questions and you answer them then they decide if they want you on the jury its a piece of cake its a little nerve racking being in front of the court but there is not alot of people there , anyway if you want to get out of it , tell them you dont belive in the system and who ever they put in front of you , you will say he is innocent , worked for a friend of mine

Answer 9

You better show up or you will be in comtemp of court and could go to jail...

Answer 10

Just what it says. I couldn't make it any clearer.