Quote:
Originally Posted by oldstudent
I actually have looked into financial assistance, but like many, I am above the poverty line.
The same holds true for Cal Works retraining. I was told you need to earn under $12,000/year.
I do occasional part time tutoring, but that is sporadic.
Fortunately, I do get help from family. But pride gets in the way of relying too heavily on them.
I also applied for a driving job this summer, but no luck.
I am thinking of driving a truck or bus long distance because I enjoy the highway.
I miss quite a few " single days", but there is no guarantee that one will not miss dozens of days if there is a long trial.
It probably would not happen, but it is not a chance I am willing to take unless I am absolutely forced to.
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OK, let's stop right here for a second. In an earlier post, you claimed you "went with the probability they would see their error and simply set me aside. I was wrong". Now you don't want to serve, even though the largest probability is that it would only be for a day or two. You're not willing to risk the smaller probability unless you are "absolutely forced to".
While I DO sympathize very strongly with your health problems and the costs associated with those, I do not sympathize with all the different justifications you've given for NOT accepting the summons. Frankly, the more I read, the more it sounds like you just don't feel you should be summoned at all. You've listed the fact that you earn more money from subbing, but you've also admitted you do miss single days frequently when you DON'T get a call to sub. The chances of you actually being called to serve on a long trial are very slim indeed. Most jury duty calls last a week and the majority of those folks only have to report for the first day or two and then just phone in the rest of the week. If you DID get chosen to be seated on the jury of a case that could last a long time, you can still explain the hardship it would cause you to serve on that jury during the
voir dire. If the prosecutor or defense attorney feels you are going to do your best to get this trial over with as quickly as possible, they may very well decide you aren't a good juror for them.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oldstudent
Of the roughly 250 work days per year, there are an average of 80-90 such days where there is no work available, and about 50-60 days where I would willing to serve on a jury.
Therefore, I am very stubborn when it comes to not losing days when there is work.
This is especially true because the courts would not miss me if I dissappeared. Even if I miss a single day, my loss is greater than theirs.
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You've already admitted you do miss "single days" many times throughout the year, so it's a bit hard to claim it is a greater loss to you than to the court system for you to miss even a single day of
potential work.
You say there are about 50-60 days during the year you would be willing to serve on a jury. Unfortunately, jury duty is not scheduled on the convenience of the potential jurors, it is scheduled in accordance with the court schedule. That's just the way it works. Jury duty is not scheduled at the convenience of the jurors for
anyone that is summoned. Unlike most of those called, though, you DID receive several postponements, including one that put their request for your service during some of those 50-60 days you claim you would be willing to serve. Even though they did try to comply with your schedule, you still chose to FIGHT the summons even when the timing WAS "convenient" for you. I know you don't feel you should have been summoned a second time so soon to begin with, but to be honest, the court system has honored your previous requests and
tried to work with your schedule and you still refused to answer their summons. Even when you asked for advice here earlier and were told to simply drive to the Clerk of Courts office and explain your case in person, you chose to ignore THAT advice because, once again, it was too inconvenient for you. Instead, you chose to phone them again, even though phoning had NOT been working for you up to that point. The bottom line is that you don't want to be bothered with serving at all...period...for any reason. I'm sorry, but that isn't the way it works. Serving on jury duty IS one of the few civic responsibilities ordinary citizens have in this country and there comes a time when each of us has to step up and accept that responsibility.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oldstudent
It is also a matter of principle. The courts are probably bombarded with bogus excuses to get out of service, and those who throw away summons.
By being upfront and honest with them, rather than trying to evade them, my hope is that they will understand my concern.
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Once again, you're basing your objections on things that you do not even know to be a fact. "The courts are probably bombarded with bogus excuses" and there are "those who throw away summons". You have no idea whether either of those statements are true or not, yet claim that as another reason YOU should not be bothered to serve in the first place. Even if those other statements are true, what difference does it make? Life is NOT fair sometimes. Just because somebody else "gets away with something" doesn't give you the right or the expectation that you should get away with it too. Personally, I try to be better than those that "get away with stuff". I understand you have legitimate and serous health issues and I understand better than many just how draining health care and insurance can be. The difference is that, even though I am also currently out of a teaching job and having to rely on substitute work and a part time job at a hotel, I would STILL be in court on Monday morning if I were summoned today because I DO feel it is my civic duty to serve when I'm summoned.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oldstudent
I should not be this important to them.
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You made it yourself this important to them by your repeated requests for postponements followed by a refusal to comply when the postponements were granted.
Like IrishDave said, it's time to put on the Big Person Underoos and just answer the summons.
