Why do people hate jury duty so much?

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One of these days I would actually like to be PICKED for a jury. I am honest to a fault so I almost always raise my hand to express a dissenting opinion. It is not because I don't want to serve. It is because I am an intelligent, independent thinker. They don't want me on a jury.

This causes me to be scared to death that I may one day be subjected to a jury of my "peers." Very few think on their own these days. If you are one of the few who do, you have no peers. Scary thought, indeed.

As long as I live in Texas I will never serve on a jury, regardless of my burning desire to do so.
 
Originally Posted By: DBMaster
One of these days I would actually like to be PICKED for a jury. I am honest to a fault so I almost always raise my hand to express a dissenting opinion. It is not because I don't want to serve. It is because I am an intelligent, independent thinker. They don't want me on a jury.

This causes me to be scared to death that I may one day be subjected to a jury of my "peers." Very few think on their own these days. If you are one of the few who do, you have no peers. Scary thought, indeed.

As long as I live in Texas I will never serve on a jury, regardless of my burning desire to do so.

I don't think I've ever heard that kind of self-appraisal except from people who are... shall we say, prone to overstatement when it comes to that kind of thing.

Either way, it's sadly true that juries often get whittled down until they're populated by the kinds of people you DON'T want deciding on your guilt. Lawyers want jurors who meet the guidelines (no detectable biases etc.), but they also want people who might be easily swayed by their own arguments.
 
I think my job only pays one week off for jury duty. if your on a jury for 6 months, I'll be fired in a heartbeat.
 
Very few trials last that long, and if they do very often judges let jurors change/leave if it looks like its going to be a long one and it would cause financial disaster to be on a jury.

Its not in the court systems interest to have nearly broke jury members trying to convict someone to get back to work.

Also FYI if you have a job that's any good very often they will pay the difference between what the state pays you and your normal pay.
 
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I've only made it to the selection process once. I thought the case would be interesting, it was a civil case on a subject I had knowledge in. The down site was I was on a tight deadline on a project at work and it would have really put me in a bind. The case was postponed and everyone was sent home.
 
I was on "call up" once. Only went part of a day then was dismissed.

The second time it was on a child molester case in 2004 and no standing call thing - just straight to jury selection. Not pleasant. Pretty much broke me down. I had to seek some level of guidance after that trial. The depravity of our fellow human beings should never be misjudged, but even worse were my fellow juror's reasoning skills or lack thereof. I don't want to say too much, but there was a lady on our jury whose belief system did not include even the inkling that such things actually do occur. She would not listen to anyone, well she would not listen to any people of Euro descent. It was many, many days of this. Combined with horrific details.

I don't "hate" jury duty. But I am an extremely busy person. One full time job and running two businesses. Call me again when I'm retired.
 
If the justice system wants more willing participation in jury service, then the law should REQUIRE ALL EMPLOYERS to fairly compensate their employees who are called to serve. By that I mean their full normal wages, less whatever payment is made by the court, for as long as the juror is needed. I was called twice over a period of about 6 years and had to beg off because my employer would not pay anything. I have since let my voter registration lapse in the hope that I won't be called again. That hasn't been much of a hardship for me because it's been a long time since I felt any candidate was worth voting for.
 
The way I see it there are two aspects to our country's system of jury by peer:

1) unpaid jurors to do the duty. If we didn't have them we'd have to raise taxes to have more paid judges or jurors.

2) jury by peer is supposed to help prevent an upper class from dominating the legal system.

Some countries uses a panel of judges or maybe just one judge. People in those countries look to our system with envy.
 
I've been selected for jury duty twice. I look at it as an extremely important part of being a citizen of the United States, and a part of my civic responsibility.

The first time I was jury foreman; both times I was on a jury we convicted the accused. Both times I was happy to give my time in order to serve on a jury. If I'm called again, I'll be happy to serve a third time on a jury.
 
I hate jury duty because of voir dire. It ensures that I won't get selected as a juror, yet I still have to waste an entire day, pay for parking downtown in some awful high-crime area, lose the day's pay, and sit around on hard plastic benches around a DMV-type crowd.
 
Originally Posted By: GrtArtiste
If the justice system wants more willing participation in jury service, then the law should REQUIRE ALL EMPLOYERS to fairly compensate their employees who are called to serve. By that I mean their full normal wages, less whatever payment is made by the court, for as long as the juror is needed. I was called twice over a period of about 6 years and had to beg off because my employer would not pay anything. I have since let my voter registration lapse in the hope that I won't be called again. That hasn't been much of a hardship for me because it's been a long time since I felt any candidate was worth voting for.


So...now, I have to pay someone to NOT work for months? And I have to pay someone to cover for him? Wonder how many small businesses that would put under!

Also: my friend is self-employed. Jury duty could bankrupt him.
 
I can't say I look forward to it. Part of my civic duty, sure; but I look forward to it about as much as going in for my annual physical. Odds are everything will be just fine, just a minor inconvience for a day. But it's nothing to get excited about.

I do have some worries about what I'd see. As mentioned, might have to sit in on something horrific. Or perhaps just moronic, like seeing grown people being immature and sue-happy.

I know the risk of being on some long running jury is slight. But that fear is still there.

*

I do wonder about professional juries. I don't have a super technical background, but I'm an engineer, and I'm not sure how well I'd do if the two opposing sides presented psuedo-science or otherwise did a poor job of presenting information in or about a field in which I knew something about.
 
I would love jury duty. Alas, I never get called. When going through the selection process I make sure that they know that if the crime involved hurting children, rape, murder or drugs, if given the proper and complete evidence I would immediately seek for the maximum punishment possible.
45.gif


Somehow I never make it on the team.
21.gif
 
Its important and I get that but that usually leads to one very boring day of sitting in a crowded room without much to do. I just had jury duty 3 weeks ago and there was 250 people there and they did not even call one panel the whole day!
 
Originally Posted By: Smokescreen
I would love jury duty. Alas, I never get called. When going through the selection process I make sure that they know that if the crime involved hurting children, rape, murder or drugs, if given the proper and complete evidence I would immediately seek for the maximum punishment possible.
45.gif


Somehow I never make it on the team.
21.gif



Add to that list cruelty to animals, and people who reside in this country illegally and you have my edited for prime time list. I won't ever make the team either.
 
I don't mind doing it. I get called for it every year and instead of driving to work, I take the bus downtown and just stay bored all day while they don't pick me for a jury (and they won't since I'm a white guy and registered Republican). It's easier than going to work.
 
Smokescreen, demarpaint, and zzyzzx, I'm in with you on all those points. Those items are probably why I won't get picked, either.

When asked during voir dire for yesterday's case, a medical malpractice suit, I piped up and gave my honest opinion: that many of these lawsuits today are merely attempts to get rich quick, to win a kind of lottery. The frequency of such suits, I said, have contributed to the soaring costs of medical treatment, because of the insane cost of malpractice insurance. The plaintiff's attorney regarded me steadily (he resembled actor Ron Leibman, who played Rachel's father on "Friends"). He murmured, "Thank you for your honesty," and asked me nothing else.

An unpopular opinion, for sure. Result: "Mr. Benzadmiral, excused."
 
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