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Just a lil update. Several people here where I work avoided the letter. Nothing happended, yet.
Its not that I dont want to do it. What really annoys me is that there are many retired, unemployed, stay at home wifes that do not work. Why cant they go serve? Lets say I was selected for a trial that went 3 weeks. That $40/day would would hurt big time! I would be glad to attend at my current pay!
^^^^ The problem is, how does the juror system know you're out of work, choose not to work or are retired? So they just pick on everyone. It might be worth it to go, then you don't have to worry about it biting you in the a s s sometime down the road. As I mentioned, most likely you'll sit there for the day, or if you you're lucky and get called to be questioned early- you tell the judge of your financial hardship and they send you home free and clear for the next 6 years.
Just a lil update. Several people here where I work avoided the letter. Nothing happended, yet.
Its not that I dont want to do it. What really annoys me is that there are many retired, unemployed, stay at home wifes that do not work. Why cant they go serve? Lets say I was selected for a trial that went 3 weeks. That $40/day would would hurt big time! I would be glad to attend at my current pay!
In Nassau County: The story is if you ignore the first notice, they will send you a second notice. Then if you ignore that one, they will fine you $50. There is no jail. It may be different in other places.
As for having a job that does not pay you while you are on jury duty, yes that stinks big time. Once I was working a job like that and of course got called for jury duty. I went and did a lot of waiting and finally was shuttled off to a courtroom with other potential jurors. Before she started, the judge asked if anyone wanted to step forward and ask to be excused from jury duty. So I saw people do it:
"Judge, I am a doctor and I run my own business. I must be excused."
"Excused!"
"Judge, I am a contractor and I run my own business. I must be excused."
"Excused!"
"Judge, I am a multi-millionaire and I just don't feel like doing it!"
"Excused!"
So I gave it a try:
Me: "Judge, my employer will not pay me for days spent on jury duty and I will suffer a significant financial hardship if I am on a jury."
Judge: "That's not OUR problem!!! It is your CIVIC DUTY to perform jury duty whether or not your employer will pay you!"
Me: "Judge, with all due respect, if the Court is keeping me from making a living, I will NOT be sympathetic to the Court's case."
Judge: **glaring daggers at me**
Other lawyers standing around in the front look alarmed.
Judge: "Excused!"
***The criminal defendant was in the front of the courtroom and he turned around and smiled at me and gave a thumbs up!***
As I am leaving, I hear the judge begin to give a lecture to those assembled about the importance of performing our civic duty ... blah blah blah ...
There are no automatic career exemptions anymore, like there used to be. Back in the day, if you were an attorney, a judge, a cop, or any other profession closely allied to law or law enforcement, all you had to do was send in proof of your profession and you were excused. Not anymore: Cops get called/have to serve just like the waiter who lives down the street.
There used to be an exemption if you had an infant, toddler, or grade-school-age child (you'd have to send in their birth certificates) but I am not sure if those exemptions were done away with or perhaps only the 'infant with no alternate caregiver' one remains.
The State and the County court systems are separate. Therefore you can get either excused after showing up, or serve on, a Nassau or Suffolk court case and then yes you will not be called for Nassau or Suffolk COUNTY jury duty for X number of years... BUT... you could then get a jury duty notice from the STATE court system afterward and it is up to them whether they choose to excuse you or not based on your exemption from the County. Or vice versa.
That happened to me 3 years ago: Got a Suffolk County (Riverhead) jury duty notice, went in for 2 days and was excused and got the 'Get out of Jury Duty Free for 4 years' card. Then TWO MONTHS later I got a jury duty notice for NY State -- and it was for a Grand Jury, no less, which is held in BROOKLYN (and I live in Suffolk... major major PITA). I called and told my tale of woe about just having been called for Suffolk County; the NY State gal told me they are not required to exempt me on that basis but I should send in my proof of Suffolk 'service'and she would see what she could do. I was happy to subsequently get a notice saying to disregard the Grand Jury notice. But just FYI that I (or you) could just as easily have gotten stuck with schlepping in to Brooklyn for days on end.
A couple of FYIs from personal experience: </br> </br> There are no automatic career exemptions anymore, like there used to be. Back in the day, if you were an attorney, a judge, a cop, or any other profession closely allied to law or law enforcement, all you had to do was send in proof of your profession and you were excused. Not anymore: Cops get called/have to serve just like the waiter who lives down the street. </br> </br> There used to be an exemption if you had an infant, toddler, or grade-school-age child (you'd have to send in their birth certificates) but I am not sure if those exemptions were done away with or perhaps only the "infant with no alternate caregiver" one remains. </br> </br> The State and the County court systems are separate. Therefore you can get either excused after showing up, or serve on, a NY State court case and then yes you will not be called for Nassau or Suffolk COUNTY jury duty for X number of years... BUT... you could then get a jury duty notice from the STATE court system afterward and it is up to them whether they choose to excuse you or not based on your exemption from the County. Or vice versa. </br> </br> This happened to me 3 years ago: Got a Suffolk County (Riverhead) jury duty notice, went in for 2 days and was excused with my "Get out of Jury Duty Free for 4 years" card. Then TWO MONTHS later I got a jury duty notice for NY State -- and it was for a Grand Jury, no less, which is held in BROOKLYN (and I live in Suffolk... major major PITA). I called and told my tale of woe about just having been called for Suffolk County; the NY State gal told me they are not required to exempt me on that basis but I should send in my proof of Suffolk "service" and she would see what she could do. I was happy to subsequently get a notice saying to disregard the Grand Jury notice. But just FYI that I (or you) could just as easily have gotten stuck with schlepping in to Brooklyn for days on end.
Don't forget Federal Court. They'll hauled me in there too.
Right, that's true! At least the Feds (US District Court, Eastern District) do have a courthouse on LI but if the case you get called for happens to be on in Brooklyn, lotsa luck.
So we can get zapped any of 3 ways for jury duty: County, NY State, or Federal.
Exactly. I had to go to Brookly for jury duty in Federal Court in January. I live in Rockville Centre so it wasn't horrific but there were lots of people from Suffolk there. The 2 Federal Courts in this district are East New York (Brooklyn) and Riverhead. When cases come up, the courts are required to take a cross sample of people from 5 counties: Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Brooklyn and Staten Island (or the Bronx, can't remember which). I felt awful for the people who were a stone's throw from Riverhead but had to schlep to East New York.
Just a lil update. Several people here where I work avoided the letter. Nothing happended, yet.
Its not that I dont want to do it. What really annoys me is that there are many retired, unemployed, stay at home wifes that do not work. Why cant they go serve? Lets say I was selected for a trial that went 3 weeks. That $40/day would would hurt big time! I would be glad to attend at my current pay!
I think the $40 a day is if you do not work, I'm pretty sure your company is obliged to pay your typical salary when you are on Jury Duty (there might be some exceptions, but for the most part you get your regular pay). I was on jury duty in Nassau back in the Fall of 07, actually the Grand Jury and it was four weeks. I was paid by my Employer during the time I was on jury duty.
`My only question is: Why didn't you just fill out the questionnaire they sent??? It takes no more than 5 minutes to complete. Had you done that, you wouldn't be in the position you're in now.
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Then TWO MONTHS later I got a jury duty notice for NY State -- and it was for a Grand Jury, no less, which is held in BROOKLYN (and I live in Suffolk... major major PITA). I called and told my tale of woe about just having been called for Suffolk County; the NY State gal told me they are not required to exempt me on that basis but I should send in my proof of Suffolk 'service'and she would see what she could do. I was happy to subsequently get a notice saying to disregard the Grand Jury notice. But just FYI that I (or you) could just as easily have gotten stuck with schlepping in to Brooklyn for days on end.
