How to Get Out of Jury Duty

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While in many countries it is a citizen's duty to serve occasionally on a jury, there are some ways to avoid such duty if it would prove a true hardship. Failure to respond to a summons for jury duty is not a good idea: that could result in up to two years' incarceration or a substantial fine. However, if you have a legitimate reason for avoiding jury duty, you should go through the legal process of getting yourself excused. Courts issue summonses through random selection, so there's nothing you can do to avoid being called for duty. Merely being called does not mean you will actually sit on a jury. This wikiHow will give you some advice on how to avoid the experience while still fulfilling your civic duty. [1] X Trustworthy Source United States Courts Official website for the U.S. court system Go to source

Getting Out of Jury Duty

• 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.

Request a date in December. If you can get a change of date, ask for December, when there's a far greater chance that trials will be delayed or moved. You may never actually get called in, but you're still fulfilling your civic duty.

Try asking them to move the date up, not back. This means you would serve your jury duty sooner than originally scheduled. The lawyers have likely already made the jury lists for closer dates, and there's a chance they won't be able to seat you. So when your date is moved they have to put you at the end of the list. You may not get called to serve on a jury at all.

• 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.

Getting Yourself Dismissed From a Jury

• 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.
• "This person is my _ (insert relations appropriate for the scenario)" The prosecution can't prove you're lying, and will let you go on the basis of judicial bias.

Act stubborn. A conviction in a criminal case requires a very high standard. The prosecution must prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. Go into jury duty acting like you think you know everything before even hearing the case. The more stubborn you can appear, the better.

• Many jurisdictions bar lawyers, judges, and police officers from jury duty. They consider these people too informed on the subject to be effective jurors. [6] 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 they 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 her seat up to a white passenger punishable?
• The judge might say that they 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).

Question the legitimacy of grand jury proceedings if summoned to one. Mention the old saying that “a good prosecutor could get a grand jury to indict a ham sandwich.” Point out you disapprove of grand juries because they are basically a rubber stamp for the prosecutor. Voice support for the Commission to Reform the Federal Grand Jury's position to reform the process.

Community Q&A

If you have been seen by your physician for anxiety in the past, you could approach them and explain the situation and they would probably be willing to write you an excuse.

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There is no upper age limit to serve as a juror. You must be at least 18 years of age to serve. However, if you are 75 years of age or older, you may be excused from jury duty at your request - no medical excuse required.

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It would be seen as a conflict of interest. You may have a biased opinion of the judicial and correction systems.

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If given the option, try to avoid registering online. Instead, use the "call-in" method. It is possible that the people who register online may be more likely to be chosen over the people who call in to register by phone.

Follow the law when dealing with the judicial system, and maintain a serious attitude. You can, however, present yourself as unstable and stubborn in order to avoid jury duty.

Tips from our Readers

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• Try and use your job as an excuse to get out of jury duty. You can be dismissed from a court case involving a young child if you’re a teacher, for example.

Don't ignore a call for jury duty. Failure to respond to a summons could result in fines, driver’s license suspension, even criminal charges leading to jail time.

Don't use any of the above suggested self-representations unless you actually believe them. Getting caught lying about yourself to a court would be much worse than serving on any jury.

Do not drink alcohol or take drugs to render yourself unfit to serve. If you are unfit to serve due to alcohol or drugs, you may be committing a criminal offence with a maximum fine of up to £1,000 or the equivalent.

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1. ↑https://www.uscourts.gov/FederalCourts/JuryService/about-jury-service.aspx
2. ↑https://www.uscourts.gov/FederalCourts/JuryService/JurorQualificaitons.aspx
3. ↑https://www.16thcircuit.org/qualifications-excuses-postponements
4. ↑https://www.uscourts.gov/FederalCourts/JuryService/JurorQualificaitons.aspx
5. ↑https://www.sb-court.org/jury-information/frequently-asked-questions
6. ↑https://www.marioncountyclerk.org/departments/jury-duty/#jurydutyexemptionsandexcusals
7. ↑https://www.aclu.org/blog/free-speech/its-perfectly-constitutional-talk-about-jury-nullification

About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 98 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 5,153,085 times.

If you need to get out of jury duty, see if you can postpone your serve date. Many courts allow one postponement. If you’re given the option to request when your next serve date is, choose a date in December since you’ll be least likely to get called in then. You may also be able to get out of jury duty with a valid doctor’s note if you have a medical or mental health condition that would prevent you from serving. Some states also allow full-time students to be excused from jury duty. If serving on a jury and missing several days or weeks of work would cause a serious financial burden on you, you may be able to get out of jury duty. You would need to provide proof of income, financial statements, and your previous year’s tax returns to the court along with your request. Another option is to share any biases you hold during the jury selection process that would prevent you from being fair and impartial, which may disqualify you from serving. Keep in mind that lying to get out of jury duty can result in steep fines and even jail time. Always be honest when you’re using an excuse to get out of serving. For tips on getting dismissed from a jury, scroll down!

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