<p>Just got back from vacation, and found a questionnaire from US District Court Jury Duty Pool in my mailbox. I have been called for county jury duty in the past, but not at this level. Looks like I am in the pool for a full year starting Sept 1, and will be notified a month ahead of time if I am called. I used to work for a legal publishing firm, and they drilled the importance of serving when called for jury duty. But I am self employed, and my business (and income) would take a big hit if I have to take more than a week away, so I am conflicted about that.</p>
<p>Has anyone else done jury duty at the district court level? What was it like? What sorts of cases is it compared to the county level (it looks like I could get called for a grand jury, for example)?</p>
<p>My W was called for some federal jury duty but I don’t know specifically what it was. She was on the hook for 6 months or a year, like you. They were much less forgiving of excuses than the county superior court is. They were actually quite invasive and in a nutshell, didn’t really care at all about the juror or the impact on the juror IMO. For example, at the time my kids were little but the court didn’t care at all that my W was the caretaker and needed to take the kids to school, etc. They do work around things like vacations though. Apparently how they treat the juror comes down to the specific judge so I don’t know if they all act similarly or not.</p>
<p>Despite the above angst, she ended up not having to do anything other than call in for the time period and never actually had to go there and do anything. A colleague at work was called for the similar court and had the similar experience - just called in but never actually had to go do anything.</p>
<p>The implications of jury duty in a USDC vary depending on where you live. Trials can be long or short, just as in the state/county system. The jury coordinator/district judge can be strict or forgiving, depending on the personnel and the court’s resources.</p>
<p>In my district, which is geographically very large, the court is very accommodating since it wants to draw a good cross section of potential jurors from a very diverse population.</p>
<p>It says “United States District Court - District of <name of=”" my=“” state=“”>". I live about 10 miles from the address of the courthouse, so it is not a hardship to get there/return for consecutive days. Just to take a lot of days off work… although it seems like it could be interesting to get called for a grand jury (says in the letter that it could happen). Beats those piddly little “he threatened me with a knife” sorts of things I got in the country jury pool.</name></p>
<p>I have. I never had to go down to the courthouse. I had to keep calling back over and over again for an entire month. And each time the recording just gave me a new date on which to call back again - usually but not always the next day.</p>
<p>Maybe you will be as lucky. Just pray that there is not some huge, lengthy federal trial starting up in your district during your term of service.</p>
<p>Hmm, I just noticed that there are actually 4 court addresses on the top of the formal letter. Two are within a reasonable distance (less than an hour), the others are both about 4 hours away. Is it possible that I would get called to one of the far away ones? :(</p>
<p>Your notice should tell you the courthouse at which you have been called to serve. Probably the closest, but don’t assume. If in doubt call the jury administrator, that is what she or he is there for.</p>
<p>Grand jury duty is an awesome experience and very worth doing if you can manage. If your time is tight, it’s probably not an option for you since it generally involves a long-term commitment–in my district, one day a week for a year.</p>
<p>Be aware that the various districts of the federal courts have varying contingency plans if the budget is not resolved or continued after April 8. Some districts are considering suspending jury trial or all civil trial or shutting down one day per week, etc., etc. If you scheduled shortly after April 8th, be sure to check the jury website or call-in number.</p>
<p>Hi Intparent, I am self employed too, and was recently called for jury service. Fortunately I did not get picked. I would imagine that US Distric Dourt would have more involved/serious cases. I sure hope you are not picked!
In my area, the county has recently built a new court house. It is gorgeous, but there is NO parking!! Even the court employees and policemen are scrambling to find parking every morning.</p>
<p>The notice I have is only that I am in the pool for the district for the upcoming year (starting Sept 1), not a specific summons. So I assume the government shutdown wouldn’t be an issue by then. Sewnsew, I would actually love the experience of being on grand jury duty, and also think it is my civic responsibility to do it if called. But I would lose 1/5 of my income if I served one day a week for a year, and would have a very difficult time meeting tuition payments for my kids. The letter also mentioned something called petit juries, I assume that is a lesser time commitment. And… maybe I won’t get called at all.</p>
<p>Intparent, when I was summoned for this kind of jury duty, I had to make calls several times. Finally I had to go in but was not picked on a jury. After that, they considered my duty fulfilled and I didn’t have to call any more. I’m hoping you will have a similar situation that if you have to report, that takes care of the commitment.</p>
<p>Cayuga, what I meant was that a lot of people try to get out of jury duty when they are called. It is an inconvenience… but I feel like it is my responsibility as a citizen to serve if I can reasonably do so. So I will do it if I can. Of course, if I am called and not chosen (or just am in the pool for the year and never am called), that technically fulfills my responsibility as well.</p>
<p>Even in federal court, many trials are quite short–mostly just a few days. There can be very long trials, of course. Grand jury duty can be over a much longer time. The grand jury does not sit at trials–rather, it decides whether to indict people.</p>