Jury Duty: What if I say I never received the summons?

Question

I was wondering....what if I return the summons with "moved, left no forwarding address" on the envelope? Do they actually check that stuff? Would I get into trouble?

Additionally...if I totally ignore the jury duty summons and say I never received it, will they actually prosecute me or fine me for not showing up? I live in a major metropolitan area of Northern California.

Answer 1

It is your civic duty. They can prosecute you or fine you. They probably won't, but they can.

Answer 2

It various depending on the needs in your area. In high population density areas like New York, you would probably get a summons before then, but even here, it is still luck of the draw and you might not. In some areas, you could go 20 or 30 years without being called to serve. In most places, you can volunteer for jury duty if you want.

Answer 3

Yes you can get in a lot of trouble for not showing up for Jury Duty. If you return the summons marked with moved or any other thing, you are going to get yourself in a lot more trouble. Jury Duty is something everyone has to go through at least once. Just show up, and your problems are solved.

Answer 4

Never lie to the gov't. It will come back to haunt you.

Chances are you won't get picked anyways -- I just had jury duty & I wasn't chosen. There were like 80 people. Just do your good deed for $6 per day & forget about it. You never know -- The case MIGHT be interesting!!!!

BESIDES -- If you write that on the envelope that would be "tampering w/ a federal document / mail" which I believe is a FELONY. Hmmm... Sounds like showing up would be a LOT less risky : )

Answer 5

Writing "moved" on the envelope and sending it back could screw with your mail delivery. The folks at the U.S. Post Office takes those things seriously. Yes, you can get into trouble by ignoring the summons. Some areas pursue those things more avidly than others do. But, it's not wise to ignore them. It's usually only one day anyway. I would say, go and get it over with for awhile. Try to look on it as a "learning experience", not a PITA.

Answer 6

Yeah, putting that on an envelop would not only be mail fraud, but it would have the legal effect of lying on a passport or other official document.

If jury duty is really a hardship for you, you can get a one-time out if your reason is good.

For example, I was out of the state for several months. During that time I was called to jury duty, and I reponded that I could not get there and stay there for a reasonable time. But next time they want me to go, I have to be there.

Answer 7

I had a jury duty notice go to an old address I had. By the time it got to me, the date that I was supposed to report for jury duty had passed. I called immediately and their response was "Who is checking the mail at that address?" I told them no one because the house was owned by my deceased grandfather and no one lived there. The clerk replied that I was lucky that the judge said to "let me slide" since they had enough people for that particular case. Moral of the story, if you move, and you're a registered voter, update your address! You may not be as lucky as I was!

Answer 8

The US mail is never to blame for lost jury summons. They do check if you say that you moved, you can get in big trouble.

Just go for the first day and claim a hardship.

Answer 9

I would just suck it up and go. That is nothing to play around with. You might get away with saying that, I dont know that much about the legal system but there is a chance that they could throw your tail in jail even if you say I never got it. I would rather be safe than sorry.

Answer 10

It might be worth a shot.

Though you should probably not f**k around with them. Just go in, and claim that you have some knowledge of the case - that will automatically disqualify you.

Answer 11

Why don't you just do your duty and go like the rest of us. You seem to suffer from the Kalifornian strain of chronic narcissism.