So, I ignored two previous juror questionnaires last year (let’s refrain from discussing the lack of wisdom on my part), and today got a “Juror Subpoena: Failure to Respond.” It tells me I need to appear at the county courthouse sometime during the next 10 days, between 11am and 4pm. Smack in the middle of my lunch-break-free workday, of course.
At the bottom of the form is the questionnaire again. Am I to assume that the purpose of going to the courthouse is to simply turn in the questionnaire, and receive a look of minor disdain from the lady behind the counter? Or am I in for some long process?
Basically, what are the odds I can get in and out in less than an hour?
The odds of getting out in an hour are close to zero. Your odds of getting out in 4 hours are small. Your odds of getting out in one day are fair.
If all that is happening is that you’re being called to jury duty, I would expect it to take anywhere from 2-8 hours. My husband was called to Queens civil court a couple of weeks ago; it took 8 hours and he was not selected for a jury (mainly, it seems because his wife is an attorney). You could get lucky and get reviewed for selection first thing in the morning, but you can’t count on it. If you are selected, you’ll be there till the trial’s done.
Hopefully you’re not also being charged with Failure to Appear. FtA carries up to $1,000 or 30 days imprisonment.
I’m not actually being called to jury duty; I’m just supposed to fill out a questionnaire to determine my eligibility for jury duty. I think it’s because I’m a new-ish resident and they somehow figured out i don’t live in California anymore.
Yeah, that’s pretty much it. Apparently you’ll spend longer getting through the security check to get into the courthouse. (according to a report from the boyfriend who had this exciting experience.) They send those questionnaires out periodically - I think I returned a couple of them before I actually got called for jury duty.