Jury duty is among Americans’ most critical obligations, but is also one of the obligations they dread most. Why else would prospective jurors on Staten Island pull out excuses like “my skin burns off monthly” and “I’m in a relationship and can’t do two things at once” to try to get out of it?
To make the process a little less painful, Gothamist has answered some of your most pressing questions about jury service in the city.
I got a summons in the mail. Now what?
It depends on which county you live in. In some places, you need to call the court the night before you’re scheduled to serve to see if they need you. In others, you just have to show up.
After you go through security and check-in (more about that below), you’ll watch some informational videos about jury service and the court system.
Then, you might be called into a courtroom, where lawyers and a judge will decide — in a process called “voir dire” — if you could impartially weigh the facts of the case. They might ask if you know the defendant, if you have any relatives in law enforcement, or even if you’ve ever hired a nanny.
Lawyers can block a certain number of people from serving on a jury if they believe those people can’t be impartial. But attorneys are prohibited from discriminating against potential jurors based on their race, gender, religion or other protected traits.
Queens County Commissioner of Jurors Audrey Pheffer said the goal is for people to spend just one day in court if they’re not selected to serve on a jury. If someone is picked, they will serve for the duration of one trial, she said.
Who is eligible to serve on a jury?
Normally, people are eligible to serve jury duty in state or federal court every six years. Beyond that:
- You must be 18 or older.
- You must be a U.S. citizen and a resident of the county where you got the jury summons.
- You must speak English.
New York bars people with felony convictions from serving on a jury unless they have a certificate of good…
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