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DW_a_mom
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16 Apr 2010, 4:07 pm

SuperTrouper wrote:
Does anyone know if you have to fill out the medical exemption form before you're summoned or when you're summoned? I could not serve as a juror.


In our county it must be filled out and accepted BEFORE you are summoned.


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DW_a_mom
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16 Apr 2010, 4:10 pm

justMax wrote:

Who are you to say that you are qualified to pass judgment on anyone but yourself?



But, then, who should pass the judgement? There can be no rule of law without someone making the decision on what has happened and if the law applies. Someone has to step outside of knowledge and make a decision about a situation they did not witness. Thus, the decision to ask 12 normal citizens to serve on a jury; for that process to be shared by fellow citizens.

---

Reading further, I realize you've progressed further into the discussion. But ... all that, I don't have time to get into. Just acknowledging it.

.


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Last edited by DW_a_mom on 16 Apr 2010, 4:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.

DW_a_mom
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16 Apr 2010, 4:18 pm

earthmom wrote:
visagrunt wrote:
Jury duty is the legal obligation of a citizen no different than paying taxes. It is the price that we pay to have frameworks in place to well order a civil society.

It is quite possible to argue that these institutions are illegitimate, or broken--indeed, that kind of debate is very healthy for a society. But the fact remains that until we replace it with something better, the court system we have is the one that we will continue to live with. That means that citizens owe their obligation to the State to respond when called upon.

Now there are some for whom service on a jury would be a hardship. Those who cannot sit for long periods or those who are self-employed and whose income is the sole source of support for their family, for example. For these cases the court can, and should make exception. But if everyone tries to fit themselves into an exception, then the burden will be placed on fewer shoulders.

There are those for whom jury duty is merely an inconvenience. For those who look for an excuse to avoid jury duty, I have no sympathy. For those who lie, or exaggerate their hardship in an effort to avoid inconvenience, I have contempt.

For those who shoulder the burden (for it is a burden), I have hearty thanks.


You have obviously never served on one.

I had all these lofty high thoughts about it too and thought it would be an honor and I could really help and make a difference and all that crap. Then I went.

Never, ever again.

Just the fact that they're giving you only a FEW things and then telling you to judge someone - lock them up - possibly kill them - is unbelievably inhumane. If we actually heard all of the evidence and could make a rational decision of some kind, it might have some merit.

Instead they give you eggs and flour and butter and tell you to make a cake. When it comes out tasting like crap because of all the other stuff you didn't get to use - sugar for instance - oh well. You're just stupid because you baked a bad cake.

When someone's life or freedom is on the line and it's not just a cake, then it's insane to limit what you are able to know about and hear and then told to make such an important judgement on another person.

I still have nightmares, and I still cry with guilt on how I let that person down because I couldn't deal with a locked room full of people shouting at me and being hateful and aggressive. I caved and it's not something I'm proud of. I will live with that forever. The person who was not guilty went to prison for 6 years. I have no idea if he survived that or what happened to him. He could have been killed in prison or killed himself or lost his family over the whole ordeal. It's really a shame. I have that on me now, because I thought I was doing my civil duty and following the rules and being a good person and doing the right thing.


I think you have the option of going to the judge and retracting your vote, thus forcing a mistrial. But making that sort of move takes a really forceful personality, and it is a lot to ask of someone.

I found jury duty to be emotionally very difficult, as well, and the case I served on (before I started to lose my hearing) was a civil trial, not a criminal one. Still, I always felt that the jury as a whole had not gone carefully enough through the process, and had short changed the guy bringing the lawsuit as a result. I ended up relenting mostly because I felt the case was brought after the statute of limitations, but there was never a through discussion on it, and I felt that should have happened. I've always felt bad about not forcing it, and that was in a case where the result probably would never have changed, so I cannot even begin to imagine the pressure you were under. I am sorry to hear about your experience. But, seriously, if I were the one in the defendent's chair, would I want someone like you on my jury? YES. You heart was in the right place even if the bad behavior of your fellow jurors and your disability (in this case, your AS did become a disability) made it impossible to follow. That is a better shot for the defendent that should not go to jail than no one at all on their side. Few can withstand the type of pressure you were under.

If I were you, I would use your story to get a medical excuse going forward. Why even worry about being called again? If you reach a space where you think you could handle it at some future date, you can pull the medical excuse. I am working on a medical excuse due to my progressive hearing loss, because I feel defendents have a right to have their cases accurately heard, and I can no longer do that. Clearly, you think your AS and meltdowns keep you from being able to be the type of juror you want to be, and that you think defendents deserve you to be. So, get the waiver.


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justMax
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16 Apr 2010, 4:59 pm

DW_a_mom wrote:
justMax wrote:

Who are you to say that you are qualified to pass judgment on anyone but yourself?



But, then, who should pass the judgement? There can be no rule of law without someone making the decision on what has happened and if the law applies. Someone has to step outside of knowledge and make a decision about a situation they did not witness. Thus, the decision to ask 12 normal citizens to serve on a jury; for that process to be shared by fellow citizens.

---

Reading further, I realize you've progressed further into the discussion. But ... all that, I don't have time to get into. Just acknowledging it.

.


A group of people chosen to consider and arbitrate fairly is a nice idea, it is simply one that is exercised in a manner currently which I can not morally accept.



HDLMatchette
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14 Oct 2019, 6:42 pm

I got called up for jury duty recently. I think I'll go to it.



kraftiekortie
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14 Oct 2019, 6:43 pm

Bring a book, or your tablet.



Joe90
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15 Oct 2019, 4:59 am

My brother got called from jury duty once, and he asked if he can be excused from it because he had depression. We didn't think they would take it as a valid excuse, but funnily enough they sent a letter back saying he can be excused from it. So I'm sure being on the spectrum can be a valid excuse too, although I don't know about America.

I also have ADHD so I find it difficult to sit for long periods of time and pay attention. I don't think I will make a very good juror.


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kraftiekortie
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15 Oct 2019, 5:36 am

Not in the US. They won’t excuse you from jury duty unless (possibly) you have an official diagnosis.

In NYC, one usually serves a couple of days or so, then is exempt for 8 years.



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15 Oct 2019, 5:37 am

i hate it. plain and simple. :x



shortfatbalduglyman
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15 Oct 2019, 7:52 am

When I got a jury duty summons , sent a copy of the autism diagnosis report and it did not bother me again



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15 Oct 2019, 10:50 am

Since I do not want to "come out" as having an ASD, I devised a method that works, although I still have to show up for the selection process.

When the judge asks me if I can render a fair and impartial verdict, I say...

"No, your honor, I cannot. From the information already presented in this courtroom, I believe the prosecution has enough evidence to convict the defendant, and that any further proceedings would be a mere formality toward the inevitable verdict."

Kinda long-winded, and the other prospective jurors are usually horrified, but it has worked three times in a row so far!


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renaeden
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15 Oct 2019, 10:50 pm

At my age I thought I would have had to do jury duty by now but no.

A friend of mine has done it, it lasted 2 weeks for her and she wouldn't tell me what it was about, still hasn't.

In Australia I'm wondering how they pick jurors.



JD12345
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16 Oct 2019, 5:11 am

A lack of patience (which may or may not be related to my ASD) would render me a useless juror.

Someone who is a friend of the family got excused because he stated that his form of Christianity meant that he couldn't possibly judge.



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16 Oct 2019, 11:51 am

Somehow I have managed to avoid jury duty so far but I have just found out that I may be called as a witness in a manslaughter trial later this year or early next year. I have informed them about my ASD diagnosis so there may at least be some accommodations they can make for me in court. It's still possible I may not actually be called but I suspect I will. I'm really not looking forward to it at all if I am called as a witness to put it mildly.


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AspiePrincess611
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28 Feb 2020, 1:35 pm

I have ASD, ADHD, poor short term memory, social anxiety, and auditory processing difficulties. As serving on a jury requires the ability to pay attention for long periods of time when the discussion may be boring, as well as remember what was said, that would be a real problem for me. It would also involve the need to actually comprehend what is being said. Not to mention possibly communicate with fellow jurors. I don't know how I could be trusted to determine someone's guilt or innocence in that situation.

I know many people think that jury duty is some kind of "privilege" or "responsibility", but I think it violates our freedoms. We should not be forced to leave our homes and be imprisoned in a building against our will for no reason. Jurors should be replaced with a panel of legal experts. The average citizen does not care whether someone is truly innocent or guilty anyway and are not qualified to evaluate evidence of a legal nature. The government is too cheap to hire qualified people to evaluate evidence so we have juries.

I would not want someone like myself serving on my jury if I was on trial or was a lawyer. Some people with ASD might make good jurors, but many of us likely would not.

If I were summoned, I would probably do what other people I know do, and claim they never got a notice. Mail gets lost all the time. Our incompetent mail carrier continually puts the neighbors' mail in our mailbox and our mail in theirs. Sometimes the neighbors bring it over, other times they probably don't. The courts where I live don't send jury summonses through certified mail, so they have no proof of delivery.

I don't care about "civic duty". Screw the government.

If you like jury duty and disagree, that's fine. You won't change my opinion though.


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AspiePrincess611
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28 Feb 2020, 1:57 pm

Actually, the best solution would be a computer program with an algorithm that evaluates evidence and renders a verdict. It might be a while before something like that is developed, though. But computers are advancing at an incredible rate. Computers have no bias and always pay attention.


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Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale
"I might be crazy but I ain't dumb"
Cooter, The Dukes of Hazzard