Standby Jury Duty

Natey · Feb 19, 2013

Normally, when summoned for jury duty in California, you had to go to the courthouse and wait almost an entire day before you were selected/dismissed. Sometimes, you get selected but not put on an active jury, and then you have to hang around there longer to see if they actually need you as a substitute juror for the duration of the trial

Now, they tell you upfront if you are on standby, and you only need to physically go to the courthouse if you are selected the day before:

A big improvement over the old system. Anyone know when they started doing this in CA? Is this how it works in other states?

Betty3 · Feb 19, 2013

It's the same in Illinois if you're selected as a standby prospective juror.

cbg · Feb 19, 2013

Been that way in MA for years.

Proserpina · Feb 19, 2013

And WA.

(My poor husband )

Natey · Feb 20, 2013

Do they rotate substitute jurors for a particular (lengthy) trial? e.g. Can you imagine being a substitute/standby juror on that (lengthy) OJ Simpson trial? At least the real jurors got to see some action in court to keep them occupied. Jury lounges can be pretty boring places, but some have free WiFi nowadays.

cbg · Feb 20, 2013

MA has a one-day, one trial rule. If you're called for jury duty, you report the day you're assigned. If you're not assigned to a trial, your duty is up at the end of the day and you can't be called again for three years. If you're assigned to a trial, you're finished as soon as the trial is, whether it's one day, three days, or six months, and again you can't be called again for three years..

If you're on stand-by, there is a number that you call after 3:00 the day before. If you're told to report, you report and the above rules apply. If you're told not to report, your service is complete. The only thing I don't remember for sure is, if you're initially called for stand-by and you're told not to report, whether your service is complete for the full three years or if it's only one year. I know that the time I was called for stand-by and was told not to report, I wasn't called again for more than three years, but somewhere in the back of my mind is that you're only guaranteed one year between calls if you don't even have to report. So I might be wrong about that or it might just have been happenstance.

Betty3 · Feb 20, 2013

In Il. if you're a stand by juror, you call the day before sometime before 4:30pm to see if you are told to report the next day. If you're told not to report, your service is complete for one year. (though it may be longer before you're called again)

Proserpina · Feb 20, 2013

Free wi-fi?

That's..disturbing.

Natey · Feb 21, 2013

Why? Even fast food places around here have free WiFi.
Last year, I saw many people with laptops in a special area of the jury lounge dedicated to people who wanted a "special" place to do their work. That special place is not available in the other courthouse I am normally assigned to (assignment is based on residential proximity to the courthouse, I believe).
I just had to do a bandwidth test, and the WiFi at the courthouse is faster than my home WiFi

Proserpina · Feb 21, 2013

Did you ever miss the point!

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Standby Jury Duty

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