I recently had the privilege and honor of spending three glorious days, well into the evening, at…read morethis court house serving jury duty.
Before Monday, I had been called for jury duty (JD) one other time and we were dismissed due to lack of cases. I was not so lucky this time. Some basics: when you get your summons, you will have a number that you are assigned. This will be your number throughout the process, so don't forget it. Check the JP website the night before to see if you have to report.
Parking: the parking garage is convenient and easy and your parking will be validated, so park there for easy access. I suggest getting there a little early to avoid the line going in, especially on busier days.
Once you get there you will check in and then you just sit and wait for your name to be called. If you're lucky, you'll be called fast or dismissed. I was called immediately and I headed upstairs. The first trial I was a going to be a possible juror for was a criminal trial. After about two hours of group questioning, I was dismissed and sent back downstairs to wait to be called again. The jury I was actually picked for was a civil trial that lasted two solid days. Lucky me. More on that in a minute.
On the day I was waiting to find out if I was going to be chosen, we were given 15 minutes to get something at the snack bar, eat it and get back to the jury pool room. Apparently, it was a busy day at the JP courthouse. The snack bar has a few sandwiches and other snacks, but if you can bring your own food, that will be even better.
The actual serving of jury duty was okay. My judge was super cool and gave us lots of breaks, brought in breakfast and lunch and our jury "lounge" was packed with candy, coffee, soft drinks, water, chips, fruit, cookies and other goodies. The bailiffs really did the best they could to make the experience as comfortable as possible for us and constantly checked in to make sure that we had everything that we needed. There's WiFi in the jury room and you can have your phone as long as you aren't in the courtroom or deliberating on a verdict (this might have been just because I had a civil case, though. I'm not sure how criminal cases work with internet access).
If you get picked, expect some long days. I didn't get out until after 7 on all three days that I was there. The worst part of the entire experience was the constant sitting around and not really moving. It does get boring after a while, especially when you are waiting for lawyers and other involved people to show up, so bring a book or other form of entertainment and bring a sweater because the courtroom gets really cold and bring your own snacks if you have dietary issues.
When all is said and done you'll get a fancy certificate thanking you for your service, so feel free so show that to the jerk who you said you would never make anything of your life.