Threatened with arrest for missing jury duty

[Sidney]

Are you kidding me????????????????
So right around the time I was dealing with the Meth cooking going on next door to me, I got notification of jury duty. The letter said I would be "ON CALL" from December 9 through the 21st. I thought I would be ON CALL. That I would be called when needed.
Well, I forgot about it, and nobody ever called so I figured, I wasn't needed.

So today, I get this letter stating that I missed it and that I will show up for court, to explain myself, or I will be arrested. AND, if my explanation is not good enough, then I may be arrested anyway.

ARE YOU EFFING KIDDING ME????????



My neighbors got by with cooking meth, and poisoning me, but I am going to serve time for not going to jury duty?????? I am so PO'd right now I can't even believe it.


So,,, I googled it, and people have actually gone to jail for this. OMFG

end rant

[Sidney]

http://www.khou.com/news/crime/Juror...205688081.html

http://blogs.lawyers.com/2013/05/tex...ing-jury-duty/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukne...w-Chicago.html

[PurpleLama]

Yep, when you are "on call", then you have to check in each night to find out if you are supposed to report the following morning.

I say that, but then again, I don't know if you live in the US or not....

[Sidney]

I had no idea. Plus I was in a fog, from being poisoned in my own home. Seriously, jail time? I guess I should have read the letter more thoroughly. I thought I would be called. I think it is a load of ****

[Robin]

This truly is unfortunate, and I sincerely hope this will pan out in your favor. The U.S. judicial system is of course unfair and corrupt, and no doubt this should not be a reason to be arrested. How is something like this handled similarily to an act of murder?

Anyway, diction is your best friend here.

When you get a chance, perhaps you could type out the exact content on their letter to you (the first one calling on you for jury duty) word for word. The English language can indeed be misleading and confusing, so I can totally understand if you misinterpreted its content. If you post the letter, perhaps we can parse it out and use etymology and common sense to see if we could prove to them that the letter can be interpreted the way in which you responded to it.

Languages are very constraintive, and no doubt constructed to cause confusion not only amongst people who speak other languages, but also with the different dialects and euphanisms contained in one nation. In the United States, people from all different parts have euphanisms that others do not understand, and every state seems to have its own way of interpreting phrases.

This is your best bet...to prove to them that their diction is misleading and that English is a variable language. If you can post your letter, I will do my best to give you valid arguments.

[jagman]

Sidney
Just show up for court and be on time. When you get called up to the judge
and he asks you why you werent present for jury duty explain the situation.
Do not become argumentitive with the judge.He will probably just give you
a verbal warning.

[Sidney]

Posted by jagman (here)
Sidney
Just show up for court and be on time. When you get called up to the judge
and he asks you why you werent present for jury duty explain the situation.
Do not become argumentitive with the judge.He will probably just give you
a verbal warning.

I will do just that. Bite my tongue and be nice. I am going to tell the court that I had illegal activity going on in my building that was making me ill,(which is the truth), and I have proof with all my phone calls to the police dept still on my phone. The cops were over here about 5 times the week of the receipt of my letter. I told them the fumes were making me sick, of course the neighbors never got busted, but its all on record. With all that occurring, the jury duty thing, disappeared into my fogged up brain. I will offer to do double jury duty if necessary.

[spiritguide]

Do not offer anything but the truth of the matter and an apology for your not appearing. Good luck.

[ghostrider]

So much for freedom these days ... I thought a jury of your peers , was a group of people that kinda know you ??? If you don't know the bloke , you aint a peer ... Sydney I hope they just leave you alone , those wankers should focus on criminals instead of honest people who just want to be left alone ... our system is soooo broken , today I heard a convicted cop killer sentenced to death got his death sentence overturned and Obama is appointing this killer to the DOJ ... huh ??? I mean he shot a policeman 12 times at close range and a jury found him quilty , Now he gets a head position at the DOJ ??? somebody make this make sense to me ...

[Abhaya]

Being a bit if a nomad. I am constantly noshowing jury summons in states where I was planted enough to be a quasi resident. In fact just got a 3rd one in a row in Cali after missing the first two. Not sure what will happen with all that. No jail threats yet though. Best of luck

[SEAM]

"Your Honor, I never received a letter for jury duty".. Unless it is 1. Certified mail, or 2. Personally handed to you (subpoena), it never arrived.....

Only a hand delivered officer of the court can compel you to be present, otherwise it is the mails fault. I have been sent these a dozen times over the years (the fruits of voter registration) and I throw the envelope out, so I can honestly tell the court "I never received nor read such a letter" (I only received the envelope).

[SEAM]

A wise person once told me - "Don't complain, Don't explain" in other words, don't pick up the shovel to begin with....

[SHAPE]

Posted by spiritguide (here)
Do not offer anything but the truth of the matter and an apology for your not appearing. Good luck.

Even better file a NOTICE OF MISTAKE and the JUSTICE will see you get home ASAP.

[Sidney]

Posted by SEAM (here)
"Your Honor, I never received a letter for jury duty".. Unless it is 1. Certified mail, or 2. Personally handed to you (subpoena), it never arrived.....

Only a hand delivered officer of the court can compel you to be present, otherwise it is the mails fault. I have been sent these a dozen times over the years (the fruits of voter registration) and I throw the envelope out, so I can honestly tell the court "I never received nor read such a letter" (I only received the envelope).

It was certified, I signed for it. :/ It used to be, only registered voters got called for jury duty (way back when), I have not registered to vote for over a decade, so I was surprised to even be summoned. I understand its frustrating if nobody shows up, but this should not be considered a crime. PERIOD.. The priorities in this country/world are so screwed up it makes my head spin.

[gripreaper]

Posted by Sidney (here)
It was certified, I signed for it. :/

That's how they got you. You are a ward of the court by tacit agreement. You "made a mistake" and do not understand. I agree, file that.

[SilentFeathers]

Posted by Sidney (here)
Are you kidding me????????????????
So right around the time I was dealing with the Meth cooking going on next door to me, I got notification of jury duty. The letter said I would be "ON CALL" from December 9 through the 21st. I thought I would be ON CALL. That I would be called when needed.
Well, I forgot about it, and nobody ever called so I figured, I wasn't needed.

So today, I get this letter stating that I missed it and that I will show up for court, to explain myself, or I will be arrested. AND, if my explanation is not good enough, then I may be arrested anyway.

ARE YOU EFFING KIDDING ME????????



My neighbors got by with cooking meth, and poisoning me, but I am going to serve time for not going to jury duty?????? I am so PO'd right now I can't even believe it.


So,,, I googled it, and people have actually gone to jail for this. OMFG

end rant

You basically violated a "Notice to Appear", a court order (read the fine print carefully).

The judge isn't going to care if there was a serial killer skinning people alive next door to you, so rattling off stuff about a meth cooker next door is just going to sound like a cheap excuse to the judge IMO.

In order to not be in "Contempt of Court" for not appearing, you will have to convince the judge that your actions were not "willful". Just explain it was your first time doing this and you didn't understand the process and were waiting for them to call you if you were needed, that the document stated that you were to be "ON CALL" if needed, and thought you were to be "CALLED" if needed.

Just speak your truth and don't use a meth head as an excuse as the judge will probably not believe you anyways......the issue is why you didn't show for jury duty, not how your home life was at the time you got the notice to appear.....but if you were sick during those days, only a doctors excuse would prove to the court that you were not willfully avoiding jury duty.

I hope this helps.

[turiya]

Sorry to hear of your trouble with the Corporate State Defacto Government, Sidney.
I would stand on the Bible, where Jesus said, "let the one without sin cast the first stone". That in itself would obviously present a problem in complying with the rest of the jurors.

But after you are cleared of this matter, it is suggested that you STOP registering to vote, as this is how you have agreed to comply with type of subjugation.

Ever since Robert Kennedy was assassinated, I stopped registering to vote, as I wasn't willing to vote for one idiot over another idiot.
Registering to vote is what leads to jury duty.

Best of luck.
turiya

[Sidney]

Posted by turiya (here)
Sorry to hear of your trouble with the Corporate State Defacto Government, Sidney.
I would stand on the Bible, where Jesus said, "let the one without sin cast the first stone". That in itself would obviously present a problem in complying with the rest of the jurors.

But after you are cleared of this matter, it is suggested that you STOP registering to vote, as this is how you have agreed to comply with type of subjugation.

Ever since Robert Kennedy was assassinated, I stopped registering to vote, as I wasn't willing to vote for one idiot over another idiot.
Registering to vote is what leads to jury duty.

Best of luck.
turiya

I have not registered to vote for over ten years. THats why I was surprised I was even summoned. But apparently they are getting us non voters to do it too.

¤=[Post Update]=¤

I also want to note that when I was going through my divorce very recently, my ex failed to show up for 2 hearing in a row. He was suppose to be required to appear. Nothing happened to him even though he was clearly in contempt. Pisses me off.

[enfoldedblue]

Sorry to her about this situation Sidney. I hope it all works out for you. One thing that I can suggest is to wear black and white to court. I had a design teacher who once told us that if we ever had to go to court to wear b&W because on an unconscious level it tells the judge that you are straight up and down ---black and white --like the law (supposedly ). He believed that it helped him get out of a DD charge once.

Good luck...I am sure it will all be fine

[turiya]

Called in for jury duty without being registered to vote?
Can you tell me what state that is?

I remember when I went to renew my license one time, the form was pushed in front of me without me asking for it. After seeing what it was, I said 'no' I don't want it. The clerk scribbled something on the form and filed it. Six weeks later, I received a voter's registration card. I thought that someone maybe took the clerk's scribble for my signature.

When the next time it was time to vote, I thought I would see if the card would let me vote for Ron Paul. When I got to the voting place. I showed them the card, but they said my name wasn't in their file. And so, said I couldn't vote. I didn't make any fuss cuz that is how I wanted it.

Perhaps, something like this happened to you. A clerical error. Someone - some clerk made a mistake, and your name ended up as a Registered voter. I would go to the motor vehicle division, or where ever, to make sure they don't have you as a registered voter.

Seems pretty bazaar, to say the least.