Bibb County institutes new policy for residents who skip out on jury duty
Effective March 30, Bibb County’s Superior Court judges will begin using a new policy for handling residents who don’t show up for jury duty.
In January, February and March, 70 to 75 percent of jurors summoned failed to appear for duty, according to the new policy document.
Having too few jurors for jury selection caused a murder trial to be postponed Feb. 23. Despite deputies seeking out the missing jurors, the trial couldn’t begin for Keith Dozier, a Warner Robins man accused in the 2012 death of Macon legal secretary Gail Spencer.
Court officials have said the problem is rooted in juror apathy and discrepancies in a master list of jurors compiled by the state. Many summonses issued for Feb. 23 were sent to wrong addresses. A few went to people born in 1900, 1912 and 1914.
The new juror attendance policy is aimed at reducing juror apathy.
Chief Judge Tripp Self said he and his fellow judges hope not to need to enforce the policy, which sets out a list of escalating penalties if a juror is found in contempt of court.
The policy is meant to put jurors on notice, he said.
According to the policy:
For the next two weeks, summoned residents who fail to appear for jury duty will be granted amnesty and allowed to reschedule their date without a penalty.
Beginning March 30, jurors absent without an excuse or deferral will be sent a “failure to appear” letter by certified mail.
If the summoned juror doesn’t respond and reschedule jury duty within five days -- or if the person doesn’t show up for the rescheduled date -- a deputy will serve a “show cause hearing notice.” The notice will instruct the person to appear in court and explain his or her absence.
Judges will hold show cause hearings monthly on a Friday morning.
A summoned resident who fails to appear for jury duty, but who attends a show cause hearing and is found in contempt of court, will receive first level sanctions. Jury duty will be rescheduled for a date within 30 days. The judge also can impose a fine of up to $1,000 or a jail sentence up to 20 days, or both.
If a juror is found in contempt after missing a show cause hearing -- or after not attending a rescheduled jury duty date -- jury duty again will be rescheduled within 30 days as part of a second level of sanctions. The judge also can impose a fine of up to $1,000 or a jail sentence up to 20 days, or both.
Failure to comply with the first two levels of sanctions can result in a bench warrant for a juror’s arrest, a fine of up to $1,000 and a jail term up to 20 days. Though the sentencing ranges are the same, penalties in the second and third levels will escalate from the first.
If a juror is ordered to pay a fine and can’t pay due to indigence, a judge can require the person to attend a minimum two days of trial or perform community service instead.
To be found in contempt and punished, a juror must be found to have intentionally ignored a jury summons or court order.
The law allows for anyone older than 70, or who is permanently either mentally or physically disabled, to be automatically exempted from service, but an affidavit must be filed with the clerk’s office.
Deferrals or excuses can be issued under certain circumstances if jurors present affidavits supporting their status as:
A full-time student taking 12 or more semester hours;
A caregiver of a child age 6 or younger;
A primary teacher in a home study program;
A primary unpaid caregiver for a person older than 6 who has physical or cognitive limitations preventing the person from caring for himself or herself and can’t be left unattended; or
A service member, or the service member’s spouse, on ordered military duty.
State legislators also can be excused from jury duty.
Bibb, Crawford and Peach counties are included in the Macon Judicial Circuit and share the same five judges.
Crawford and Peach counties have fewer trial weeks each year than Bibb.
In Self’s nine years on the bench, there hasn’t been an occasion when a trial was postponed due to juror absences in Crawford and Peach counties, he said.
Although juror attendance isn’t perfect in those counties, Self said it’s easier for deputies to round folks up if needed.
It’s unclear if or when the policy could go into effect in Crawford and Peach counties.
“It is a very wise decision for any juror in Peach and Crawford to appear when summoned,” Self said.
Information from Telegraph archives was used in this report.
This story was originally published March 14, 2015 at 8:47 PM with the headline "Bibb County institutes new policy for residents who skip out on jury duty ."