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Jurors' new life: time for shopping, child care services and movies
October 9, 2008
All of sudden, being a juror isn't such a bad gig.
Michigan's prospective jurors may soon get some time for shopping, thanks to a new plan that calls for pagers to be distributed while they are waiting.
In parts of Pennsylvania, jurors can get free child care services. And in Washington state, some potential jurors get to listen to jazz or even watch movies while waiting to be called.
In recent years, courthouses around the country have taken initiatives to better accommodate potential jurors and help limit the number of no-shows.
While flat-screen TVs, computer terminals and free wireless Internet have become common in many jury assembly rooms, some courthouses have gone even further to make jurors more comfortable.
Macomb County, Mich., soon plans to give prospective jurors pagers, which would allow them to wander within a mile of the courthouse while waiting to find out if they will be selected for jury duty. City officials recently approved about $15,000 for the project and the other $15,000 was fundraised, said Carmella Sabaugh, the county's clerk and register of deeds.
Jurors would have to return to the courthouse within 10 minutes of getting paged, Sabaugh said. The initiative will be welcomed by the downtown businesses as well as potential jurors, she said.
"We'd like to acquaint them with the Mount Clemens area and have them take a little advantage of some free time, away from just sitting in the room with 150 people," she said.
Another service offered for jurors in Macomb County is the result of an agreement with the local library, Sabaugh said. Jurors can request which book they want and it will be delivered to the courthouse for them the following day, she said.
Child care in Pa.
Meanwhile, in Allegheny County, Pa., jurors don't have to worry about babysitting. The courthouse offers free childcare services, said Raymond L. Billotte, district court administrator for the 5th Judicial District.
Billotte believes the number of deferrals by prospective jurors due to child care conflicts has dropped as a result of the service, which has been offered for about three years.
"It has really shown prospective jurors that we're thinking about them, we understand what their problems are and we are willing to make services available at no cost to help us in the system of justice," Billotte said.
In King County Superior Court, in Seattle, the juror assembly room is equipped with at least a dozen television monitors used to show orientation videos, said Paul Manolopoulos, the court operations manager. The screens may also be used to play movie DVDs during wait times, and the stereo system is used to play jazz, he said.
A number of courthouses offer free tea and coffee for jurors and provide magazines, board games, puzzles and playing cards in waiting rooms.
In New Jersey, some courthouses provide jurors with books donated from local libraries, "quiet" rooms for reading and lockers that can be used to store belongings.
In Ohio, a survey done this year that included responses from 143 courts found that 120 of them provide jurors with free parking and 58 provide them with free snacks.
More courts are working harder to get jurors' feedback and accommodate their wishes, said Michael Garrahan, jury programs manager for New Jersey's judiciary.
"There is more of an interest in opening up that process and getting more feedback from jurors on what they would like to see," he said.
Still, with many states experiencing budget cuts, some improvements for jurors may be put on the back burner. For example, Minnesota recently slashed juror pay in half, to $10 a day, as a result of funding cuts.
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