Ask A Native New Yorker: Can I Get Out Of Jury Duty?

Are you relatively new to this bustling metropolis? Don't be shy about it, everyone was new to New York once upon a time, except, of course, those battle-hardened residents who've lived here their whole lives and Know It All. One of these lifers works among us at Gothamist—publisher Jake Dobkin grew up in Park Slope and still resides there. He is now fielding questions—ask him anything by sending an email here, but be advised that Dobkin is "not sure you guys will be able to handle my realness." We can keep you anonymous if you prefer; just let us know what neighborhood you live in.

This week's question comes from a woman who's worried her husband will lose his job if he's out for jury duty.

Dear Native New Yorker,

My husband is serving jury duty, and his boss is really urging him to do anything in his power not to serve. Which, in turn, means he keeps talking about how he can't serve on jury duty or else he'll lose his job. And that's totally stressing out our kid!

While I totally understand that jury duty can be onerous, isn't it our civic duty to serve?

Your truly,
Law & Order Fan

A native New Yorker responds:

"All rise for Judge Dobkin!" (Courtesy Jake Dobkin Private Collection)

Dear L&O Fan,

First off, fuck your husband's boss. He's putting his selfish financial interests ahead of the democratic needs of our Republic. Not only that, according to the handy NYS Unified Court System "Jury Information for Employers" brochure, he's committing a crime:

An employer must allow employees time off from work to serve as jurors. An employer who discharges or penalizes an employee for serving as a juror may be prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney General and subjected to criminal penalties.

Your husband needs to man up, print out this document, highlight it, and leave it on his boss' desk with a sticky note that says "be a better American or you're going to jail!" Then he needs to organize a union at work so no other employees get mistreated like this. Then he needs to shut that place down with a strike, and then find a new job at a more humane organization.

Exemptions from jury service were eliminated in New York back in 1996. Since then, everyone who's a US Citizen, 18 years or older, living in the county in which they are called, who speaks English and doesn't have any felony convictions, must at least report for service.

Otherwise you can eventually be fined, or even arrested. Very eventually! After serving three days on a medical malpractice case back in 1996 (it was settled before we got to render our verdict) I ignored jury summonses for about 14 years. They actually get progressively more threatening: first a polite note, then one with some mean red letters saying WARNING on the outside, and then I think one with a giant black bar that says "YOU ARE ABOUT TO BE ARRESTED!" Or so I remember—I was pretty busy with important 20-something activities like writing blog posts and drinking, and I just threw them right into the garbage.

That was a callow youth dick move! I eventually matured and meditated on it, and when I moved to Brooklyn around age 30 and got a summons in Kings County, I decided to go down and do the thing. It took all of 8 hours: I got called for two potential juries, but they didn't even get around to asking me any questions (I guess my card was at the bottom of the pile, and they found enough impartial jurors before they got to me).

Internet access on my phone made passing the time completely painless. At the end of the day I got a piece of paper saying that I don't have to go back for 6 years (or maybe 8? I need to find that paper!) Apparently, ending the exemptions broadened the potential juror pool so much that you get called for service much less often than you used to.

I was actually a little pissed off not to get picked to serve. What other times in your life are you going to get to make life and death decisions involving complete strangers' lives? Have you ever seen 12 Angry Men? That's a good movie! When else will you get to meet so many other people from different walks of life, and actually have an interesting conversation with them? Only a really lazy, cowardly person avoids experiences like that.

But even if you are a lazy coward, there are still good reasons to serve. For instance, so that when you or your loved one gets jammed up on that felony charge you find that there are sympathetic people with your background on the jury! Or a civil court example: say you're a bicyclist, and like all bicyclists, you eventually get doored by some oblivious motorist, and you need to sue for pain and suffering. When that goes to trial, you're going to want other bicyclists on that jury, and if you avoided jury duty all those times and so did your bicyclist friends, there won't be, and who's going to pay for your new bike then? Nobody, that's who.

The court system will give you one postponement, no questions asked, online, and I've had plenty of friends who've gotten multiple extensions by asking in person at the courthouse. Using these, you can find a time when it's convenient for you to serve. Primary caregivers can also postpone until they no longer have those obligations, so having a baby or infirm parent or whatever is also no bar to service.

Economic hardships are also no excuse. The system will pay you $40+ per day (it's complicated, but companies with more than 10 employees normally pay the first 3 days, and the state takes over paying on day four. Some generous employers will pay your full daily wage, as a small thank you to our society for all the business benefits provided by a fair and impartial judiciary. Gothamist LLC does!)

Finally, remember that in our highly litigious society, nearly all social issues are decided at least in part by judges and juries. This includes many big important topics, like "how are minorities treated by the law?" and "is there a different standard of justice for the rich and poor?" If you don't serve, you lose your right to comment or complain about any of that stuff! What else are you going to bitch about then?

N.B.: Doing jury duty also allows you to experience different lunch options! Did you know they have a Shake Shack right next to the Brooklyn Courts now?

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