Jury Duty?

[maile_lani]

<p>This may be a little odd, but I was wondering if any of you guys have ever been called for jury duty. I had a notification at my old address (about an hour away) so I just called them and told them that I don't live there anymore, but what happens if you get called and you have a wedding booked? Most weddings are on Saturdays, but I get the occasional Friday or Mid Week one... also a lot of my weddings are out of state which means I leave on Friday and come back Sunday or Monday sometime. It's made me really nervous :S Are there any type of clauses for "freelancers"? Has anyone experienced this?</p>

[Matt Laur]

<p>Most jurisdictions make allowances for workers who are on unchangeable schedules. They'll just push you back to another jury pool another week.</p>

[daverhaas]

<p>Yes - been called to Jury Duty 2 times - 1 federal 1-state</p>

<p>Federal - Actually got to sit on a case - about 12 years ago... We went Monday - Thursday on that one... Friday was the lawyer's and Judge's day to get caught up on other things.</p>

<p>State - Set in the jury pool room for 3 days - got called up to 3 cases and dismissed from all of them. In my county the state courts with jury trials don't meet on friday - with most new trials starting Monday - Wednesday. Occasionally a case will start on a Thursday or Friday - but those are typically the ones that a Judge hears without a Jury.</p>

<p>As Matt said - all you have to do is tell them that you have a job - and that you are unavailable for service on that day and they will let you defer. Keep in mind it's a deferral not a complete pass. They will call you again - and expect you to come in. I believe that how many deferrals and for how long varies by state, but they really do expect you to come in at some point.</p>

<p>You could also use as an opportunity to network and get someone to back you up, and you do the same for them (for the photography part that is)</p>

<p>Dave</p>

 

[William Michael]

<p>No idea what the rules are where you live - here there are no automatic exemptions or excuses for not arriving when called because one is a Wedding Photographer, nor if one has a Wedding Booked.<br>

<br>

WW</p>

<p > </p>

 

[William Michael]

<p><em>"all you have to do is <strong>tell them that you have a job </strong>- and that you are unavailable for service on that day and they will let you defer"</em><br>

<em>Entirely diff</em>erent kettle of kippers here . . .<br>

Interesting, no?</p>

<p>WW</p>

 

[dave_wilson1]

<p>Oh yeah..... Lost track how many times here in good old NJ. Never served. Either it was cancelled or I was excused for a documented reason. The good thing here is, once you reserve the day for them and if you call in that morning and it's cancelled, they don't bother you for a good long time. </p>

[frank_skomial]

<p>Prepaid vacation proof and conference schedule excused me twice from the jury, but I had to go there and ask the judge for extension.</p>

[walter_degroot]

<p>the jury folks are usually understanding.<br>

I had to go to Newark<br>

and they placed guards and had a big fence around the parking lot.<br>

I served on one case .and was dismissed from several other juries.<br>

I was called and didn';t go. I was in one of the four waiting rooms<br>

and they only called prople in the other rooms<br>

I noticed this and the clerks said " don't worry, it is not your fault"<br>

DO not try to weasel out of it. be honest and straight forward.<br>

or they will find a way to punich you.<br>

I am past the age so it is not a problem for me anymore.<br>

take a good book, but hide it when in the courtroom.</p>

 

[Jerry_]

<p>The tricky part will be trying to explain you need off on Friday to be somewhere Saturday. The legal system, at times, is not understanding of all things going on in the world. A scheduled hospital visit for surgery on Friday may get you off the jury detail, but a travel day may not.</p>

<p> </p>

[john_h.1]

<p>My observation is that jurors are commonly excused altogether if it can be shown, in person, that an unavoidable hardship to others will occur due to a conflict . One of my states even gives an automatic one time delay option by mail for a conflict . I suggest not wasting it on a "I don't feel like going right now" situation as enhanced scrutiny ensues if subsequent request is made on the new date. Other situations elsewhere may allow a deferment/delay though it is advisable to have more to show that merely 'having a job' since mostly everybody else there does as well.</p>

[benjamindbloom]

<p>When I was called they asked for days that I had known conflicts. I had some business trips planned that would have been expensive or impossible to rebook. I notified them and it was not an issue. </p>

<p>I would call and ask about how it works in your jurisdiction; I believe ours was even more lenient for self-employed citizens. They're not trying to put you out of business and if you can talk to an actual person you can probably find a good compromise. </p>

[richardsnow]

<p>Maile--<br>

Looks like in New Orleans, (I assume you are still there), you can send a letter to the court for an excuse. If you are denied, you have to go the court on the first day of jury duty, (looks like it's usually a Monday), and you can re-visit your excuse in front of the court clerk. If you are again denied, you have to go through the jury selection process and may get excused by the judge at this point. In Louisiana, if you are not excused by mail and you don't show on the first day, they will summon you to your own hearing and most likely will fine you.</p>

<p>RS</p>

[Damon DAmato]

<p>In Los Angeles County, you <em>must </em>serve. There are no excuses except disability, and your doctor will have to sign for you every time they summons you. I get a summons about every year and a half.</p>

<p>You are "on call" for a week and have to call every day after 5pm to see if you have to come in. That means you pretty much can't book anything for the week, because you never know.</p>

<p>If you come in and don't get selected, you are done. If you do get on a jury, you in until the trial's over.</p>

<p>What you can do to save the week, is to call and volunteer to come in the first day. You take your chances up front.... then, if you don't get selected, you're done for the rest of the week.</p>

<p>Want to get out of service-- during questioning, when they ask you, "will you follow the judge's instructions as he reads them to you?" give the answer, "I reserve my right to nullify the decision." I can pretty much guarantee they will not choose you to serve.</p>

<p> </p>

[neilambrose]

<blockquote>

<p>Want to get out of service-- during questioning, when they ask you, "will you follow the judge's instructions as he reads them to you?" give the answer, "I reserve my right to nullify the decision." I can pretty much guarantee they will not choose you to serve.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>If you want to make really certain, just say 'Don't worry, I'll find them guilty'.</p>

[jay_66]

<p>Years back, I got called for Federal grand jury duty. That did not involve a trial. You listen to testimony of the witnesses and decide whether or not to indict. There's no judge, just 23 grand jurors and the prosecutor. Plus you get to ask questions of the witnesses. It was for 1 day a week for 12 weeks. It was kind of neat. We were assigned a major Mafia investigation, so we heard testimony from all these wiseguys. It was right out of <em>Goodfellas</em>, <em>Casino </em>or <em>The Godfather</em>. I half expected Don Corleone to be sworn in. I agitated these dirtballs with nasty questions. Thank God we were anonymous, I'm sure I had a bull's eye on my back.</p>

<p>If you ever get called for <em>grand jury</em> service, do it. You will not be bored!</p>

[heather_claypool]

<p>Not sure where you're located, but here in Ohio if you are the sole proprietor of a business you may be excused. I got called last Feb. as I was headed to Florida to shoot an engagement, but I was able to be excused. Most of the time, like the OP said the weddings are on Saturdays, but every now and then you run into an unusual situation like this!</p>