Legal HELP

[redlite]

My day and year has just been ruined and I need legal advice to save it and my sanity.

Got a Jury Duty notice in the mail for Grand Jury Duty starting October 8Th. It says I am going to have to report to court in Brock-Vegas 3 times a week for the next 3 MONTHS- W>T>F-
I have been saving all my vacation time to fish this fall. And I was scheduled to be off for the better part of the last 2 weeks of October to fish. With how bad the year has been, I'm bankin on the fall to save the season. Now this.

Does any one out there know how I can beat the system and at least get this delayed for 2 months?
I have been in a state of frantic disarray here at work trying to find info on how to at least get it put off.

Also, I testified in a capital murder case which has made me ineligibale for regular jury duty so far in the past. Does this apply to "Grand" Jury duty as well? I can't find any info on this anywhere.

PLEASE HELP.

If this should be in another forum, I'll move it, but I figured I'd have a better shot at gettin a response in this forum.

Thank you.
redlite

[MakoMike]

Not sure how it works in MA, in RI you can get it postponed for the asking. Also ask if your ineligibility for regular jury duty applies to GJ duty. They don't want to process you just to have to found inelgible.

[Bronko]

First things first, call the jury number they gave you on the paperwork and ask about how to postpone service. Chances are you will need to show some sort of financial/family hardship by you actually doing your civic duty. The fall striper bite is probably not on the courts list of "pardonable" items Grand jury duty is a pretty time intensive, it can be tough. For regular jury service often times a phone call is enough (depending on who you talk to at the jury pool). They have the ability to delete your name and toss it back into the jury pool within the next three months you will be called again. As a lawyer I wouldn't pick you as a juror knowing you wanted to fish.

btw-bring up the capital murder point and run it by them...can't hurt

[cheferson]

Get some old scrubby clothes, weird sunglasses, some flashy, tacky jewlery and go in there and act like a freak. MAybe talk to yourself a lil and maybe throw a little head twitch in every once in a while. WOrked for me when they wanted me for jury duty, just did this at the interview, wasnt asked to come back.

[Mike P]

Not sure how it works in Mass. Here in NYC, the jury clerk selects people from a standard jury pool at the start of the grand jury term, and they're empaneld by the supervising judge. I would think that in other places, the local prosecutor cherry picks his or her grand jurors.

Being a former witness doesn't automatically disqualify anyone from jury service. What's likely happening is that one of the lawyers is using a peremptory challenge to get you off the case---probably the defense lawyer if you were a prosecution witness. Your problem will be, if that's the case, it's going to make you even more attractive to the prosecutor as a grand juror, if he has any say in the composition of the grand jury.

[STEVE IN MASS]

For regular jury service in Mass, you can postpone it on the "first call" just by sending back the card asking for a delay.....they will reschedule you for about 3 months later......on that rescheduling, you have no out, you HAVE to accept it, with no further postponement.

I've done this before (just last year), so I know. Fortunately, they wanted me to originally come in the fall, and I opted to postpone, and got a date for January. Come the January date, we had a major snowstorm, and court was cancelled that day. I was notified that because of that, it was considered "time served", and was off the hook for another 3 years.

Not sure if a call for a grand jury works the same, but I am pretty sure you can get it postponed, but only ONCE.

And it doesn't matter if you served before......once you serve, you are free for 3 years, but then after that your name can come up again by luck of the draw.

(And by "serving", it doesn't matter if you actually sit on a jury, or are just called for the pool, show up, and are dismissed without actually getting on a trial. Just showing up and being dismissed counts as service.)

[BigFish]

Can't you just tell them you are fishing? Seems like a good enough reason to me!

[tlapinski]

do what i did, don't show, call and say you slept in and can you get postponed. after the 3rd time i did it they said i filled my requirements. haven't been called back in the 2+ years since.....

[afterhours]

shave head, wear tank top, camo shorts, black combat boots,large temp tatoo that reads " kill 'em all and let God sort 'em out", and twitch like cheferson said.

[Nebe]

tell them your pregnant

[spence]

I'd ditch the tank top and wear a Ted Nugent sleeveless t-shirt

Wish I had some real advice.

-spence

[Nebe]

Borrow some pants from Bassmaster!

[fishweewee]

Call in advance to see if you can defer.

Otherwise, show up October 8 and tell them your story - that you have already served on a capital murder case.

[kippy]

Good call Eben..pants from Bassmaster and singing YMCA should get you sent home quickly..

[macojoe]

I have never done Jury duty!! I have been called about 6 times, and just never went!!

They have not sent me another notice in 5 years now!!

[Swimmer]

I can tell you that in the last few years I have seen many people arrested for evading jury duty. No jail but the Judge will hit you with a fine that takes your breathe away. The judges take it personally that someone doesn't want to spend time with them.

The courts never issued warrants for this before but they dont care anymore. As far as GJ duty goes it can be pretty intensive. I think you should try the "I allready have a paid for vacation scheduled", which it sounds to me like you do. If it your first time in on the GJ list that should work, but the next time I doubt any excuse will work. Oh yeh, as far as a lawyer wanting you in the GJ room. Very rarely in Mass. is any crime targets attorney ever in attendance, because GJ's indictments are secret. The GJ has between 13 and 23 people. If the system has scheduled a GJ they have plenty of work to do. That is they are holding perps on bail to await indictment. Its a useless part of our system and a huge waist of time for all. People should be just charged with the felony outright and brought to trial in Superior court. The only people who benefit are the attorneys $$$$$$$$$$$$$. Get it.

[MikeTLive]

I had never been called for juryduty until this week.
My wife, however, has been called out every year sometimes twice since two months after registering to vote. In fact she even got GrandJury and RegularJury duty callouts within the same week!!

I can only connect it with being on unemployment recently that finally got my name onto the rolls.

The system is ludicrous.

[lurch]

I have always wanted to be a juror but my dad was a police officer for many years which got me knocked out of the jury room everytime I was selected. Maybe you can say you know too many police officers???

[outfished]

Fish hard for 2 or 3 days in a row (with bait) before going in, don't change, shower or shave and your gauranteed out!