Since we’ve had a number of jury duty threads lately, I thought this might be an interesting thread to have. If you have, please indicate what the nature of the case was and how long it lasted.
I personally have been summoned three times, but was only chosen to serve on a jury once. It was a DUI case that was over in one day and I was paid $17 for my time.
I’m over 50, have lived in the same state all my life, and I was summoned for jury duty for the first time in 2011. I was on call for 3 months but never had to go to the courthouse.
I’m 46, lived all over the country, but in Napier for the last 12 years.
Called three times: Served on an aggravated robbery case (we found her guilty - she laughed) Lasted a week. The fraud case was dropped halfway through. One day. The rape case’s lawyer for the defence obejected when I was called, I don’t know why. I was very relieved.
I’m going in for a fourth call up early next month. I’m not looking forward to it.
I served on the jury for a murder trial at the Old Bailey in 2010. It took about 6 weeks, and was a lot less interesting than it sounds - a lot of the evidence hung on using mobile phones signals to suggest where the two defendants had been at crucial times, so we spent a lot of time looking at maps and the location of various mobile towers whilst listening to an engineer explain what that all meant.
We eventually reached a unanimous guilty verdict for both defendants and they were sentenced to 19 years each. It’s an experience I’m glad I had but not one I’m in a hurry to repeat.
I actually sat on a jury once – for a speeding ticket, of all things! And we let the guy off. His story sounded plausible – he was driving a van, was ticketed for speeding after making a turn. He claimed and we believed that his van probably couldn’t have reached the speed for which he was ticketed in the distance from the intersection where he turned to the point where he was stopped.
Nope, We don’t have jury duty in the Netherlands. I think it is both good and interesting that you in the US do have it. Since our trials don’t have to be understandable to the layman, our trials are much much duller and more heavy on the procedures and lawyer-speak.
I think I’ve written here about both, but I’ve been on two juries:
First was in Federal court in the early 1980’s. Case involved four defendants, on marijuana trafficking charges. Long trial due to the number of defendants, and I was an alternate throughout so did not participate in deliberations, but the judge’s clerk let me know three of the defendants were convicted. The fourth was clearly a case of mistaken identity on the part of the government.
Second case was last year, in state court. Quick trial (less than two days) of finding the defendant guilty of being in possession of a stolen vehicle and of being in possession of drug paraphernalia (a crack pipe.) It wouldn’t have been such an obvious case, especially about the stolen vehicle possession, if the defendant hadn’t testified and proceeded to pretty much convict himself. I got the impression his attorney did not want him to testify, but that he had insisted on it.
I was summoned - got as far as the initial selection pool for one case - but was sent back to the waiting room. I read through a stack of books and magazines that week.
I served on a jury in 2010 that lasted for 12 days. There were three defendants on trial for assaulting a woman, stealing her purse, and then when they were found they were in possession of cocaine and a gun. We found them all guilty of the assault and one guilty of the drug possession and one guilty of the gun use during the crime.
I served last year in state court on a civil trial - a woman was struck and killed by a car - it lasted about 5 days not including jury selection.
It used to be in New York that attorneys couldn’t serve on juries. They not only selected me, they made me foreman. Whereas, when my husband went for selection, he got bounced as soon as they heard he was married to an attorney.
Ah well. It was very enjoyable. I mean, not the hearing about the dead lady but the overall experience.
We found the driver negligent by a non-unanimous vote (I dissented) and came up with some calculation of past and future damages (there were several experts on future damages) which I can’t remember exactly what it was right now.
I was an alternate on a workman’s comp case a few years ago. Once the testimony and arguments were complete, I was dismissed.
A few years back - went to the Old Bailey every day for two weeks. Nothing happened until the last two days. Fairly dull, but I take civic duty seriously 
The first several times I received notice for jury duty I was either out of state at college or overseas with the Army. Obviously I was excused. For years I didn’t receive any notice. Then I got notice to be on grand jury. I filled out the form and when they saw I stated “police officer” as my profession I received a call and I was told I was taken off. Being a police officer is not an automatic disqualification for jury duty but they figured there might be a number of cases I could not be impartial on. I was put in the petit jury pool but never called. The last notice I received was a few years ago and it was sent to my new address from my old county. Sent it back with a note saying I didn’t live in that county anymore. Its been several years now and no more notices.
First jury trial for this case– since overturned by the state supreme court. Jury selection took a full week, and at the end we were sworn in and told to report right after the first of the year. Lasted 9.5 weeks (ended a bit after St. Patrick’s Day), sequestered Monday through Friday 100 miles away from home, and the evidence was traumatizing as hell. Got a few thousand in jury pay for the case as well as my full salary from work, as well as having the state pay for room and board.
Yes, but a grand jury not a trial jury. I had to go every day for the entire month of February last year and ended up hearing about 50-60 cases, most of those were drug related offenses and thefts, though there were two child porn cases, one rape and a couple murders and assaults.
I have served twice, but excused several times because the lawyers did not want either someone involved in insurance or a paralegal involved in the jury and I recused once because I knew the family of the defendant.
Yes, I served on a week-long civil case about who was responsible for a restaurant fire.
Summoned many times, served once.
The defendant was accused of willful destruction of property and attempted B&E. He was harassing a woman who was hiding in her apartment, and tore out her screen, supposedly in an attempt to enter her home. Guilty of the first charge, not guilty of the second.
Both states I lived in for most of my adult life had an automatic opt out for a sole proprietor of a business so I’ve always been able to opt out. I have been an expert witness though.
Civil case (libel). Lasted over a week. Was interesting but when it came to the deliberations I really, really hated the experience. Some of the jury were too meek and frankly some were too stupid to understand the details of the case, some weren’t committed, some were loudmouth bullies and there was initially a 9-3 split with some kind of unsure on the damages aspect. The bullies managed to shout some people down and the forewoman said she didn’t want to come in again the next morning (it was getting close to close of business for the day) so she kind of forced people into a corner. The judge said both verdict and damages had to be unanimous. The damages were never unanimous - eventually got to 11-1 and the forewoman told the judge it WAS unanimous. It was awful and went to appeal in the end. Not sure how that turned out but I’m glad it wasn’t a more serious criminal trial. A real eye-opener to the flaws of the jury system but what would be the alternative?