It looks like you were able to post this question. When I was called for jury duty in San Francisco, one woman showed up with a basket of knitting and knitted the whole time she was waiting to be called for her interview. The judge would not allow anyone to read books, etc., but he did not stop her from knitting.

That's the only suggestion I have for the moment.

I've done my fair share of jury duty here in Southern CA! I sure don't understand allowing knitting needles but not reading material. I'd say the majority of people have brought books or other reading materials each time I've served. You'll likely know more on your first day, but I wouldn't hesitate to bring a book and/or other reading material. Most jury assembly rooms have various kinds of reading material. Also, bring something to eat. Most courts have a place inside where you can buy food, but still a good idea to have something to snack on your first day. The last time I served, the trial lasted two months and deliberations went on for a week. I was one of 3 alternates, and we weren't allowed to deliberate. They made us spend the entire week in the jury assembly room. That was the worst part.

Not related to your question but I know LOTS of people here who've never responded to a jury summons. Some have even ignored the "Notice of Failure to Appear" they got after ignoring the summons. Nothing ever happened to any of them...after years of tossing out the summons.

Lars, just to clarify...did you mean the judge ixnayed reading in the courtroom? If so, it would be the same here...no books or knitting needles inside the courtroom. Here, "waiting to be called for her interview" takes place in the courtroom. The jury assembly room is where people bring items to help pass the time.

When I lived in Tennessee, you could bring anything. Cell phones, laptop, books, whatever. That was while you were in the jury pool. Once you got called, the bailiff would hold your items for you.

In New Mexico, you can't bring anything into the court house, but you are only going in when needed so no sitting in the jury pool.

For some reason, I get called for jury duty a lot. :)

I will need a book to read. Water to hydrate and take my meds, Sandwiches , fruit and cheese. A pillow for my back. I walk with a cane. I need frequent bathroom breaks because of incontinence issues. I'm 66 and impaired.

Contact the jurisdictional Commissioner of Jurors, seagrass. As reflected above, the rules vary.

After age 65 you can ask for a venue closest to your home , so this court is 15 minutes from my house. I have a handicapped placard. I don't want to be excused but I do need to function. And not pee my pants.

With physical problems, you can ask to be excused. With a Dr's note it's a given. Books, notebooks, magazines OK. Knitting needles would be considered a weapon!

A woman sitting near me sounded like she had end stage COPD and the court called her in and excused her because of her endless coughing!

And just a note for those who ignore their jury notifications, my hubby ignored them for years, then I saw something in the paper that they weren't going to take that anymore! DH ignored it one more time and was served with a warrent, had to go to court, and was fined $350! It could have been a felony! Nancy

Here if you ignore a jury summons, you'll get a visit from a Deputy who will have a warrant in his hand for contempt of court and then you'll get an opportunity to tell the Judge personally why you think it's OK to ignore a Court Order. We're a small county, so jury pools are already pretty limited.

Here there are no cell phones allowed inside the courthouse, and knitting needles would also be excluded as weapons, I think. The Courts never cared whether books, crossword puzzles, that type of thing were brought along. No food or drink is allowed in the courtroom but it can be kept in the Jury Room. Elery was called last year for a murder trial and was not chosen, a jury was seated before they ever got to his "number", but one of our neighbors was excused because she had a bladder condition which required frequent bathroom trips. The Judge indicated that he would not necessarily be able to stop a witness in the middle of testimony to allow a bathroom visit, and so excused her. Anyone with a doctor's excuse would be excused, of course, and anyone over 70 would not be required to serve unless they chose to.

Our courthouse in our small town didn't have a cafeteria or vending machines, and the jury was taken to lunch together to the single local restaurant, then returned to court. People with conditions such as diabetes which required periodic breaks for eating or blood sugar checks were usually excused, as breaks in testimony are disruptive and sometimes not possible.

Sometimes the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, you know. It's admirable to want to serve on a jury, I've done it because it's not just a responsibility, it's also a privilege to participate in making our court system work. However, if health issues could interfere with the workings of the court, it's sometimes best to just back out.

I do remember when I was working we had a man who owned a pet elephant. Yes, in Northern Michigan, go figure. Anyway, he said he couldn't serve jury duty for more than a day because his absence upset the elephant and you just don't want an upset elephant. We all smiled, we really didn't want to upset the elephant, but he didn't get called anyway so the point was moot. (grin)

Annie

Were you already picked?

Here, we have a central courthouse for the whole county, and it's far away from everything. I've been summoned for jury duty 3 times so far and never picked. Cellphones and computers are allowed in the jury pool waiting area; they try to make everyone as comfortable as possible, w/ a snack area, coffee, study/work desks, magazines, etc.. I packed a cooler w/ drinks and a lunch and left it in my car. We were given a lunch break. I had my phone, and my iPod too. I can read books and magazines on my phone.

Of course nobody should be reading or looking at a phone during a trial!

Seagrass, each court has its own rules, so I don't know if this applies. Here (SoCal), jurors are highly valued and in short supply, and they'll make accommodations for your issues. I'd suggest calling the jury room right away and discuss your issues with them, especially about needing frequent breaks and whatever issues you have with sitting on their chairs for extended periods. Just as it's your obligation to serve, it is also your right and privilege. They may be able to provide you with a more comfortable chair, or an adjustable chair. They should be able to give you extra time to walk between here and there.

As to what to bring with you, I think you've already hit the highlights. There should be somewhere to get a bottle of water or something. You can ask them about that too, so you don't overladen yourself with "just in case" extras. Your food description sounds fine. Maybe have some things you can munch in intervals. There should be a proper lunch break, probably a long one, but there can be a lot of coming and going and up and down, when you might like a few grapes rather than biting into a whole apple for instance, or half a dozen nuts instead of half a sandwich.

Be careful about bringing treats to share. You might not be allowed to pass around home made foods. You can inquire about that as well, if you're included to do that.

It all depends on where you live and the judge assigned to the trial. Here in SoCal a medical excuse from a doctor is almost always accepted, along with caring for minor children or someone else in need of your care. Frequent restroom trips would be a viable excuse. What can be hard are excuses due to financial hardship. I remember a judge telling a courtroom full of potential jurors, "People, we're denying all your financial hardship requests. Listen up, you need to be losing your house for that to happen."

Regarding ignoring a jury summons, it must depend on location. I've read the courts know that approximately 30% of the population, at best, respond to a jury summons. A friend of ours in law enforcement said there's not much the court can do until they start using registered or certified mail. We once got a "Notice of Failure to Appear" for a neighbor who apparently didn't respond to a jury summons. It was the size of a postcard. Really??? Seems they could do better than that if they're desperate for jurors.

Here you have the option of postponing your jury duty. Twice I've asked for late November or December. I never had to go in due to the light holiday schedule for the court.

Jury duty can be somewhat intense, depending on the trial. Once picked for a trial, your life can kind of become the court's and that trial. However, it can be very interesting, too. I've also maintained friendships with people I met on jury duty.

I'm not at all opposed to sitting on a jury. I just want to be ready for it. I have physical issues that are embarrassing to me, as well as dietary restrictions. One of my foremost irritations is boredom. Something to read is essential.

seagrass, I admire your attitude about it. Most people with no physical restriction(s) try to get out of jury duty. Taking something to read is NOT a problem. I do think you might consider contacting the court to explain your situation.

I'll write my concern on the on the Juror Questionnaire, in black ink as requested...

In my area, once you receive a jury summons, you just have to call in, not appear and hang around all day. If your group number on the summons is one that is not listed when you call in, you don't have to appear. I have received 3 summons' over recent years but was never actually called out as part of a jury.....and could stay at home (or work) to find this out rather than having to drive miles to the courthouse (an hour's drive) and wait around all day!!

Oh, I forgot about the confirmation call, gardengal! Ours has those instructions too, IIRC. In fact, I seem to recall the info for those summoned is available in the literature we receive with our summons. It definitely tells you to prepare to be there all day, even if that may not happen.

Our county courthouse also contains a restaurant/cafe.

I was allowed to read while waiting to be called for the jury interview. They also had TV going, which of course was too insipid to pay attention to. Obviously, no reading during the actual time I served as a juror. Can't understand not being allowed to do something to pass the time, quietly! What state are you in?

Bathroom breaks were allowed, you let them know so that if they want to call you they can wait a few minutes.

We went for lunch between noon and one, and there were a couple good places within walking distance, or you could bring food (cold).

I showed up for jury duty when I was called in San Francisco, but they excused me immediately after interviewing me. At the time, I was self-employed as an astrologer, and I guess the D.A. did not want an astrologer on the jury. I had a lot of different part-time jobs when I lived in SF, and pretty much most of my jobs were free-lance.

I got called here and had to go to a courthouse in Inglewood, which was only 15 minutes away, but when I got there, I could not find the room I was supposed to go to and stood in a line with people waiting to pay traffic tickets for about 30 minutes before I asked someone what the line was for. I ended up being a little bit late for jury duty, but they did not seem to mind. On that day, they decided not to have a jury after all, and everyone was excused. The next time I got called up, they wanted me to go to downtown L.A., and I was suffering from severe arthritis at the time, and so I had my doctor write me an excuse. The parking lot downtown was four blocks from the courthouse, and I knew that was going to be difficult for me to walk. Also, I could not sit for a long period of time without getting up and moving my hip and knee joints. Fortunately, I no longer suffer from this condition as severely, but I have not been called again. The cutoff age here is also 70, but I'm not there yet.

In San Francisco, one could take something to read, but no one was allowed to read while prospective jurors were being interviewed, and there were probably about 200 in that one room. Knitting was allowed, however, but that was back in around 1982 or something like that. It was very difficult to get a jury in SF because most people (even those who wanted to be on the jury) were eliminated either by the D.A. or the other attorney. A certain percentage of people did not speak or understand English well enough to be considered. The judge asked one woman from Guatemala if she could be fair, and she said, "No. I am from Guatemala. I am brown." He asked her again, but she maintained that she could only be brown and not fair. One man was asked what his job was, and he said, "I wash money." The judge had actually heard about this man who washed coins for the St. Francis Hotel, and the judge explained to people that this was done to prevent tarnish from silver coins getting on the white gloves that women used to wear. By 1982, coins were no longer silver and women had stopped wearing white gloves all the time, but the hotel retained the practice of washing money. A couple of years later, the same man was on "Ripley's Believe It or Not" show on TV. The judge excused him from jury duty also, mainly because of his age, I think. There were a lot of odd characters in the jury pool in SF, and I guess I was one of them.

Lars, there are so many crazy jury duty stories. It can be quite an experience to hear what potential jurors have to say when being questioned. I have a friend who was once called to jury duty when she lived in San Francisco. She had a new baby and was nursing, but they still wouldn't excuse her. She showed up the first day with the baby and was immediately dismissed. Pretty stupid she had to go in at all.

I live in fear of being called to downtown LA! I know they do try to assign you to the closest court, or at least court less than 20 miles from your home.

The last time I served was for a murder trial with 3 defendants...all gang members. The courtroom was full of their "friends/family." At the end of the trial we were all escorted to our cars by deputies and were told to take an alternate route home. I remember thinking I'm never doing this again! :-0

I'm not afraid to serve. I'm just afraid to pee in my pants.

Chloebud, I have a friend who was called to serve in Downtown L.A. He said it wasn't a problem to change the courthouse to one near him the same way you can change the date, but that it helps to call in right away.

Seagrass, you'd know if you had the call in thing. It would be on your summons.

In California, some time ago, they realized they weren't getting a good diversity of jurors because of the exceptions and excuses. People hated sitting around in the jury room for two weeks. The ones who didn't have an accepted excuse were the elderly who thought it was a change to their daily lives, people who worked for big companies that paid them same as if they'd gone to work to sit there and knit or read, and maybe a smattering of students and teachers during their vacations.

Now we have "One Day, One Trial" where you call in for five days to find out if you have to show up the next morning, and can arrive at a civilized time if you watch the introductory videos online. Once you're there, if you're not called to a courtroom, you're done for the year at the end of the day. "One day." If you're selected for voir dire (interview), you have to keep coming back on subsequent days as may be required to finish voir dire and, if chosen, be a juror on the trial, until you're dismissed. "One trial." It's much more humane, but just about everyone but police have to serve. The only economic excuse is pretty much if you're so poor you or your family won't eat if you don't work. People over 72 can be excused permanently if they don't wish to serve on the basis of age alone (no other excuse), but they may serve if they can do so, given reasonable accommodation for whatever infirmities a life long lived may have bestowed upon them.

If you're key man in some endeavor, you can reschedule so that you can make sure to have coverage in place (which you should do when you get the summons, so you don't waste a day trying to wiggle out of it). Even the governor has to serve. Same with kids. You can reschedule to a time when you have someone to watch them. If you're a full time caregiver for a family member (which might include stay at home nursing mother of an infant), you might be able to get out of it, but you'd probably have to show up for a couple of hours and put your case to be excused to the judge. If you regularly have fill in/substitute help so you can have a day off, the courts will expect you to make the same kind of arrangement to do your jury service. In general, however, if you have One Day, One Trial, expect to go in at least one day (though now and then you don't get brought in at all), and expect not to be excused.

Re voir dire: everywhere in the U.S.A., there are rules for challenges by the lawyers to excuse jurors they don't want. These are different in certain courts and perhaps vary by jurisdiction as well, but basically, as they ask the questions during voir dire, if they decide you aren't fit to serve for some reason, they can ask the judge to dismiss you for cause. There are rules about why someone can be dismissed for cause, and it's up to the judge to determine if they apply. Each side also has a certain number of jurors they can dismiss without demonstrating a valid reason, just because they don't like them. Once both sides have used up these "peremptory challenges". any fit juror must be accepted, including astrologers and lawyers. :)

No one wants to empanel the friend I mentioned. He's an academic, exceeding intelligent, very attentive and nitpicky. He's always one of the first peremptory challenges. They want bidable and cooperative people who will behave in a predictable manner.

Seagrass, again, inform the juror administration of your desire to serve and what kind of accommodation you'll require. If you're empanelled, also inform the bailiff, and if so instructed, the judge. You have a right to serve as a juror. You have a right not to pee in your pants. If they can make it so that you get frequent enough breaks, they will. If they're unable to accommodate you because of the structure of the trial of something, they'll tell you that as well, and perhaps dismiss you. The important thing is to advocate for yourself, and clearly inform them that you really want to serve. Note all the messages in this thread telling you how to get out of service, when you said from the beginning that you want to serve. Most people with such issues are trying to get out of it, not looking for help to stay in. So just be very clear, and use short sentences that focus on the important points: You want to serve, you have these issues, you want help so that you can exercise your citizenship, you do not want to be excused.

"Now we have "One Day, One Trial" where you call in for five days to find out if you have to show up the next morning..."

plllog, that "One Day, One Trial" once turned into a two month and one week long trial for me. Regarding the 5 days of calling in, you hope that last phone call on Thursday night won't pull you in. I once was on call the week of Thanksgiving. I intentionally requested it knowing the court's schedule would be light. Also, the court is only opened Mon-Wed that week, so you only have to call in Sunday through Tuesday night. I was a little nervous to call in on Tuesday night but relieved when I heard them say, "Thank you...you have completed your jury service."

ETA - Based on my own experience you're exactly right about an economic excuse. It's got to be really bad to be excused for that,

Yeah, the only one I saw given a quick dismissal on economic hardship was a street corner flower vendor. I think they dismissed him in the jury room. Others had to wait for voir dire to start, but given a chance at that time to ask the judge to excuse them. I think all the "hardship" ones were denied, though most were given a chance to reschedule, after blowing their whole mornings.

Re your 9-10 week trial, it was only one trial. Long trials happen. If the trial is expected to take much more than 3-4 court days, they usually ask if there are further hardships that they may face during an extended trial, and the judges tend to be more open to excuses, similar to the days when jury service was two weeks, as many trials as fit into those two weeks, and as many extra days as necessary to finish out a long trial or one started on the last day. That is, expect jury duty in California to be a two week commitment, still, but longer than that, for a big trial, you might be excused.

Yes, one very long trial! They told us to expect it to last a month and asked if that would be a problem for anyone. I was kind of surprised most said no. However, it did become an issue for some when the trial went into the second month. Also, as I mentioned, deliberations were another week. I get the need for jurors, but I also think the courts need to realize people have lives. Some judges are much more understanding than others. The judge for that 2-month trial was actually pretty cool.

Thank you all for your insights and responses. I have been called to jury duty twice before. I am older now and unsure of my ability to get through the process but I do want to serve.