Christy Bieber has a JD from UCLA School of Law and began her career as a college instructor and textbook author. She has been writing full time for over a decade with a focus on making financial and legal topics understandable and fun. Her work has.
Christy Bieber, J.D. ContributorChristy Bieber has a JD from UCLA School of Law and began her career as a college instructor and textbook author. She has been writing full time for over a decade with a focus on making financial and legal topics understandable and fun. Her work has.
Written By Christy Bieber, J.D. ContributorChristy Bieber has a JD from UCLA School of Law and began her career as a college instructor and textbook author. She has been writing full time for over a decade with a focus on making financial and legal topics understandable and fun. Her work has.
Christy Bieber, J.D. ContributorChristy Bieber has a JD from UCLA School of Law and began her career as a college instructor and textbook author. She has been writing full time for over a decade with a focus on making financial and legal topics understandable and fun. Her work has.
Contributor Jeffrey Johnson, J.D. Deputy Legal EditorJeffrey Johnson has written novels and movies in addition to legal analyses of eminent domain and immigration law. His experience in writing engaging fiction makes him uniquely capable of making the most dry and academic legal topics interesting (or.
Jeffrey Johnson, J.D. Deputy Legal EditorJeffrey Johnson has written novels and movies in addition to legal analyses of eminent domain and immigration law. His experience in writing engaging fiction makes him uniquely capable of making the most dry and academic legal topics interesting (or.
Jeffrey Johnson, J.D. Deputy Legal EditorJeffrey Johnson has written novels and movies in addition to legal analyses of eminent domain and immigration law. His experience in writing engaging fiction makes him uniquely capable of making the most dry and academic legal topics interesting (or.
Jeffrey Johnson, J.D. Deputy Legal EditorJeffrey Johnson has written novels and movies in addition to legal analyses of eminent domain and immigration law. His experience in writing engaging fiction makes him uniquely capable of making the most dry and academic legal topics interesting (or.
| Deputy Legal Editor
Published: May 14, 2024, 12:26pm
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In the United States criminal justice system, accused defendants are entitled to a trial before a jury of their peers. There must be people to serve on those juries. Jurors are found through a process called jury selection.
If you are called to serve on a jury, you must respond. But what happens if you miss jury duty the first time? This guide explains the potential consequences of not reporting as required.
While the process can vary slightly by location, in most court systems, potential jurors are randomly selected from a master list of eligible citizens. This list is typically compiled from voter records, DMV records and other similar sources.
Individuals who are randomly chosen to serve as potential jurors are given a summons or court order to appear on a particular time and date.
Those summoned to appear must come on the date required and become part of the jury pool. The actual jurors for the case are then chosen from that pool, often after questioning by attorneys on both sides to determine if they can be impartial.
If you are ordered to report for jury duty, you are expected to be present in court on the date specified in your summons. There are consequences if you do not show up after being summoned by the court.
The specific penalties vary depending on where you live, as well as whether you were summoned to potentially serve on a jury for a state court or a federal court.
If you do not report when summoned for federal jury duty and are not excused by the court, you could be served with an Order to Show Cause. If you are served by the U.S. Marshal Service, you must appear before a federal magistrate judge.
If you don’t have a good explanation (show good cause) for why you skipped out on reporting as required, you could be held in contempt of the U.S. Jury Service and Selection Act.
Potential penalties the court could impose after holding you in contempt include the following:
These consequences are serious, and you should take them seriously. This means you must make sure you comply if you’re summoned to appear in court to potentially be selected to serve on a federal jury.
While the federal rules are standardized and apply across the United States, things are different when it comes to state court jury duty since each jurisdiction can set its own rules and penalties.
In general, though, the consequences of failing to show up for state court jury duty could include:
Community service and a criminal record are also possible penalties. While there’s no guarantee a judge will impose these consequences on you for not coming to court as summoned, there is a chance this could happen, even after missing jury duty just one time.
Courts take the obligation to serve on a jury seriously, so you should make sure you do as well.
If you are worried about the potential consequences of not reporting to jury duty, you have better options than simply failing to show up.
If you simply forgot to come to court or made a mistake, like showing up on the wrong day, it’s best to be proactive and call the number on the summons to explain your error. Often, you’ll just be reassigned to come on a different date.
If you cannot serve, you can request to be excused. You may be eligible to be excused if:
Often, you can mail a written request to the court to ask to be relieved of your obligation to serve before you must show up in response to your summons. You won’t have to report on the assigned date if the court approves your request.
If you don’t get excused before the time you’ve been summoned to court, you should report as required. You can ask the court to excuse you from actually serving if, at the time, you have valid justification for not being able to be a member of a jury.
You do not want to be dishonest to get out of jury duty, though, as this could be considered perjury, a criminal offense.
If you have been accused of missing jury duty and are facing penalties, it’s a good idea to speak with an experienced attorney. Your lawyer can help you to understand your rights and to ensure that you minimize potential consequences of failing to report for jury service.
You can get excused from jury duty if you have recently served on a jury or if serving on a jury would be an undue hardship. Usually, if you have served within one to three years, you won’t have to serve again (although the rules differ by state and length of service). Undue hardship such as lack of affordable transportation, being the caretaker of a young or disabled child or financial hardship can get you excused as well.
There are many potential reasons you might be exempt from jury service, including medical issues, being an active duty military member or being the primary caretaker for a child or disabled person. The best excuse is the one that is true and accurate for your situation, as lying to get out of jury duty could be considered perjury and carry criminal penalties.
If you don’t come to jury duty, you may be called before the court to explain why you failed to show up as required. A judge could fine you, sentence you to a term of incarceration or impose other penalties such as community service.
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ContributorChristy Bieber has a JD from UCLA School of Law and began her career as a college instructor and textbook author. She has been writing full time for over a decade with a focus on making financial and legal topics understandable and fun. Her work has appeared on Forbes, CNN Underscored Money, Investopedia, Credit Karma, The Balance, USA Today, and Yahoo Finance, among others.
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