Jury Duty, Oh My!

[Mamabeakley]

I got a summons to Jury Duty today in the mail.

It's a court that does 1 month or 1 trial - you call in once a week to see if you have to report the following day, and then you can get put on a trial that can last up to 4 weeks.

Obviously, nobody in their right mind is going to put me on a 4-week trial starting anytime in July! OTOH, I'd rather "serve" now (often you call in and they never tell you to show up) than after the baby's born!

I decided just to lay out the situation for them and let them decide if they want to excuse me or not. I just really hope they don't try to call me in, say, October. I am NOT interested in leaving a bf infant at home every day and pumping for a 4 week trial. Or even leaving my babe at home for a day at that age. I've carefully arranged my life so that I DON'T have to leave my baby. :

Maybe if that happens I will suddenly discover an urgent need for my help by a family member in another state for a while . . .. I know some courts are fine with breastfeeding moms requesting an exemption but others have fined moms significant amounts of money for contempt of court . . ..

Okay, I shouldn't worry about that now!

[Michigan Mama]

Ugh. Not so great timing, huh? For what it's worth, I've gotten "summons" like 4 times, but never had to go in. Hopefully that's the case for you, or that they will just exempt you for now.

I'm all about serving my civic duty and all that, but not when I have a little one who needs me!

[maddymama]

Hi Mama,
I'm in similar shoes to you, but I was summoned for a 3 month jury thingy starting early July. My OB is writing them an excusal letter, even though it isn't an official excuse, to try to get me out of duty.
Good luck,
~maddymama

[mamaheids]

You should be able to get out of it, now and/or when you are caring for your infant/BFing. I was called for duty when my DD was a little over a year and there was no way I could make it happen with BFing and being her primary care provider. (SAHM). I just wrote a letter explaining my situation and I was excused, no questions asked.

[GhostRose]

I got called to jury duty when I was about 32 wks pg with ds. I remember sitting in the court room while they did their picks, then having to sit on this super hard and short (my big preggo butt didn't even fit!) seat for 2 hours while they sorted through us. I made no secret out of how uncomfortable and crabby I was. They dismissed me shortly after that.

[ohiomommy1122]

you should probly be able to get out of it now and up until the baby is 1 yr old if you are nursing I knows mamas that have gotton out of it after their baby was 1 because of a nursing baby

[Abraisme]

I've been called for jury duty several times since my son was born. You do not have to go if you are a full time care provider for another person. There should be a box you check, or you just write it in and they'll send you a confirmation letter.

[maddymama]

Originally Posted by Abraisme

I've been called for jury duty several times since my son was born. You do not have to go if you are a full time care provider for another person. There should be a box you check, or you just write it in and they'll send you a confirmation letter.

I think that depends upon which court you get called to. I've been called to county court and have just had to check a box. The one I've been called to right now is a district court and doesn't necessarily have a care provider excusal, and it is entirely up to the discretion of the judge whether or not he/she excuses you. My fingers are crossed that the judge allows my excusal bc I don't know how I'll be a juror hugely pregnant, in labor, or with a newbie...........
~maddymama

[dislocator3972]

When my boss had to go in for jury duty, she just waited until it was her turn to introduce herself and then made a big scene about how serving would interfere with her diabetes (she was trying to get on the pump and that requires meticulous records of blood sugar levels) and they excused her. I guess all you can do is be honest and keep your fingers crossed.

[R1coryR1]

the best story i have heard is of this little old lady, in sitting in the courtroom jury pool while they interview the potential jurors...they got to her and asked her if she had a problem with whatever the violent crime was and she responded "no, but if we don't get some air conditioning in this courtroom, i'm sending someone to jail."

they excused her after that.

[Mamabeakley]

The other silly thing about all of this is that I work for churches, and everyone I know who is a minister or other church professional tells me that generally, lawyers will NOT select church workers for juries. They think professional church workers will have certain biases (which I am actually highly unlikely to have) and therefore pretty much rule them out!

[MeepyCat]

*Definitely* call them and lay out the situation. Odds are good that they'll excuse you and you won't be summonsed again until years from now. No one wants to empanel you when you're hugely pregnant, and if you're the sole care provider for an infant at home, it really is not practical at all for you to serve. (Do you have any idea how hard it is to find daycare for an infant under three months old? There are special licensure requirements for that in a lot of places, and many daycares just won't take them at all. If they do take them, they cost the earth.)

I have heard of courts holding moms in contempt for trying to get off of jury duty because they breastfeed, but those are all moms of older kids - 1 year and up - not moms of infants.

[tankgirl136]

I got called into our local court for Jury Duty when I was about a month along, I went in and the case was pleaded before we got a chance to be talked to. I think ok I am all done, nope the District court comes calling a few months later.

They do not count me having gone in when called only if I actually sat on a Jury. They wanted me to drive down almost 2 hours (but ironically approx. 2-5 miles short of getting the extra mileage allowance and hotel allowance ) Because of morning sickness and car sickness at the time I was able to get a postponement, but I am seriously worried they will not give me a second one. If they come calling my next service dates will be less then one month after I give birth (thats at full term), I am so hoping they push me back or offer another postponement or I am in BIG trouble.

Good luck with yours!!

[Care Lee]

I have not had to go to jury duty because I have been nursing an infant the last 2 times I've been called for it. I just called and let them know and it wasn't a big deal at all.

Also, I doubt they will want you if you are this late in your pregnancy because of the chance that you could go into labor.

[Mamabeakley]

So, I checked my status today and they have decided to put me on "short cases only" meaning, I will still have to call in, go in if they need me to, and serve if selected, but I will only be eligible for cases expected to take 1 - 4 days at trial (instead of up to 4 weeks.)

This is actually great, I think! It means I won't have to be called during this baby's infancy. So, YAY!

It's still a little annoying, but I'm okay with doing my civic duty at the cost of annoyance :

[dislocator3972]

Yay! That's great news!

[leighann79]

Wonderful news!

[Talula Fairie]

This happened to me when I was NINE MONTHS PREGNANT with #2. I got a summons for just about the date I was due. I called the courthouse and explained the situation, they took my name off the list. I also mentioned that I'm a stay at home mom and the lady I spoke to said she'd remove me from the list for the next few years.

[Hezzie]

I got called in for jury duty in mid-April, as I was recovering from Hyperemesis and still having "bad" days about once a week where nothing would stay down and I was bedridden. I explained my situation to the lawyers and the judge, but still got picked! The judge was super nice about me being sick/pregnant and said if I had to vomit to just go and they'd stop the trial. Also, we took bathroom breaks like once an hour, so it wasn't too bad. It was only a 3 day trial (DUI case, pretty open and shut) and it was actually fascinating. I'd never served before or had even been in a courtroom. Call me weird, but I wouldn't mind serving again (as long as I'm not breastfeeding, lol). Just make the most of it!

[Talula Fairie]

You probably could do jury duty while breastfeeding assuming your child was over 6 weeks and you had a caregiver. It's a big myth/fallacy that you're tied to your baby all the time and can never go anywhere. Even a baby that won't take bottles could use alternative feeding methods like syringe feeding or even a cup. Pumps are a glorious, glorious thing.