OH %&*(& Jury duty!

[HeartsOpenWide]

I go to school four days a week. I just got a jury summons, I swear I get them every four months! I so can not deal with this while in school, and they do not let you out of it for school unless it is the first week of classes or finals week. The day I have to appear and argue my getting out of it is on the day of my clinicals.

Any suggestions or stories of what you have done?

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

If you go and tell them you don't think you can be unbiased you'll be dismissed right away. I've gotten several notices in the past and my doctor has written me a note that said that emotionally I couldn't handle jury duty. At the time I really could not. Now if I got notice I would go.

[Lisa CCU RN, RN]

Wow. How do they pick you for jury duty? I've never gotten a summons and I'm almost 27.

Knock on wood.

[labcat01, BSN, RN]

Ok...whenever I get a jury summons it usually says right there on the card the reasons you can be excused for jury duty (student, parent of a young child, etc.) and you just circle it and mail it back. Does your jury summons say anything like that?

Also, in my county, you get selected by your license and voter registration so if the name on your license doesn't match the name on the voter registration card (say you omit your middle initial) then you are more likely to get called for jury duty (because your address is in there twice). You might want to check and see if that applies to you.

[mamason]

This also happened to me :wink2: while in nursing school. I simply wrote them back explaining my circumstances. That's all it took.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

In TN it's also by Drivers License and Voters Registration. My Dad has received many summons for jury duty over the years. My Mom has not received one and she has no drivers license but is registered to vote.

[smk1, LPN]

If you have children let them know this would place an undue hardship due to childcare issues, also let them know that you are a nursing student and have mandatory clinical days that cannot be missed or made up. That should get you out of it.

[CHATSDALE]

i vote, i drive - i have had notice 3 times with instructions to call the evening before scheduled selection..twice i was instructed not to come in

i was on jury once

does anyone believe in civic duty

[missninaRN]

Chatsdale-

I don't think the OP was trying to shirk civic duty but rather trying to not get kicked out of the nursing program due to the absences that serving on a jury would entail.

To the OP-

Can you ask about having your turn to serve deferred until you are not in classes, maybe the Summer?

[jov]

I just got a jury summons

I too got a jury summons last year in the middle of nursing school. I sent it back with a letter basically saying "guys, please, you dont understand, missing only 1 day of nursing school will be a problem, missing a week seriously would sink my ship for the semester." I promised I would be happy to do in the summer while I was off, but please, please, please do not make me go now. I didn't have to go then but lo and behold they DID send me a summons in the summer. Which I honored. And which I was excused on day 1.

as far as the advice from another poster about throw it away... I wouldn't do that if I were you. Take it from someone who has worked in the legal system....

[Ado Annie, ASN, RN]

People in my family just throw the summons away. It's not sent by registered mail so there's no proof that you ever got it. The one that I got I was excused though for school.

When I went for jury duty, the judge was sending out deputies to bring people in who had been summoned and hadn't shown up.

[puggymae]

Ask your clinical instructor or advisor to write a letter on official letterhead describing your program and how you can fall behind and possibly fail if you miss class/clinical. I do this all the time for students and have never been turned down by the court.

[smk1, LPN]

i vote, i drive - i have had notice 3 times with instructions to call the evening before scheduled selection..twice i was instructed not to come in

i was on jury once

does anyone believe in civic duty

it's not about not believing in civic duty, it is about not ruining your graduation chances for a jury summons. Certain situations call for an excuse for the duty. Doesn't mean you never have to do it, just that you can't at the moment. Personally I can't afford to be kicked out of the program because of missed clinical days.