No Excuse for Jury Duty - John Dunn

FOX 17 News – By: John Dunn

Some say it’s a civic responsibility, but others would rather just say no.

We’re talking about jury duty, and if you’re asked to serve get ready to commit.

The days of getting out of jury duty could be coming to an end.

Cheryl Kennedy has heard it all.

"Each day, I'm shocked," says Kennedy.

As Nashville’s jury coordinator, it’s her job to find about 120 people each week, and she’s often surprised by the excuses people come up with...like the woman who said she had trouble with directions.

"She said the last time I went downtown I get so lost that the only way I could find my way home was I followed a cloud," says Kennedy.

There’s the truck driver who said he couldn’t sit for long periods of time, the teacher who had ADD, and the Titans Fan who couldn’t serve because he was too depressed after a Sunday loss.

All of these excuses might have to do with Tennessee’s current jury law, which exempts large groups of people from jury duty.

Elected officials, attorneys, accountants, physicians, clergy, teachers, firefighters, police officers, pharmacists, nurses, and National Guard members are all exempt.

"There were quite a good percentage of our population which was excluded from jury duty," says Rep. Kent Coleman, D-Murfreesboro.

Rep. Coleman is sponsoring a change in the law which removes all of those exemptions.

Basically the new law says if you’re not a felon, and you’re physically and mentally capable, you should serve.

Even Coleman, who is a practicing attorney, would lose his exempt status.

"It's very important for people to serve on a jury in order for the judicial process to work," says Coleman.

Perhaps the new law will cut down on some of those excuses, like the one from a woman who recently emailed Cheryl Kennedy.

"She couldn't be honest, she would pick favorites, and she was not the right person for the job, and if she wanted to the job she would have gone to school to be a juror," says Kennedy.

Afterall, as it says on the courthouse wall, the first duty of society is justice.

The new law would also raise the fine if you don’t show up for jury duty from $25 to a maximum of $500.

If the governor signs it, the law will go into effect on January 1, 2009.
No Excuse for Jury Duty - John Dunn