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Oh, good, maybe they'll stop the annual drive to get me on jury duty.

Here is some additional information on the Twin Peaks situation:

Deputies and CHP officers now have to go down the hill to testify because that court is closed... and we have few enough officers as it is.

PLUS the first week the court was closed in TP... a mother seeking custody of her children was beaten up on Highway 18 as she went off the hill to court.

Yes, the husband did it.

One can only hope. I'm only working four days a week and I'm the company's sole employee but they want me on a jury. Come on, plumb the ranks of the unemployed or retired or something and let me and the company at least try to earn a living. I was also told they actually hold very few trials, a few a month. Perhapes in the interests of saving money it should be closed all together.

So we should continue to pay the cost of a court that's rarely used to keep officers up here? Aren't they off the clock when they're in court anyway? And would the husband have not found the wife no matter which court she was traveling too?

When the Big Bear judge was absent a few years ago and trials weren't held in Big Bear ... my jury summons came anyway ... for Barstow ....

Sigh . . . figures.

I just read the rules of jury duty in CA and they can make you travel up to 80 miles from your home. Over 80 miles you have to prove why being put up in a sleezy motel would be a hardship. Um, maybe because I wouldn't sleep and would be falling asleep during important testimony.

If all else fails just act too smart. Both sides really want stupid people of whom they can persuade easily. That's why you'll never see professors, doctors, lawyers, or other professionals on juries.

I was told I could go before the judge the first day and explain that the business would come to a grinding halt without me. That would be an acceptable exclusion. Financial hardship on ME is apparently not an acceptable reason anymore.

I'm guessing my refusal to swear on a bible would probably get me thrown out the first day

No one is required to swear on a bible. Affirming that you will tell the truth is sufficient.

GUILTY! The cops wouldn't have arrested them if they weren't GUILTY!

Did I mention I'll also be wearing a full length Pagan ceremonial robe and a 12 inch pentacle around my neck?

No seriously, if the business could afford to pay for jury duty, if anyone paid for jury duty, if I weren't the only employee, if I hadn't just lost 1/5 of my income I'd be thrilled to sit through jury duty.

I was summoned and actually had to go to report for jury duty about 5 years ago. It might have been longer as it was when we had the female judge. She was not taking anybody's financial hardship excuses including mine. This summons was two weeks before Xmas. I tried to explain to the judge that my biz was way too busy to take off for jury duty. Thankfully, I was the last challenge the defense had and they axed me. I was leaving the court and saying thank you several times. The whole courtroom laughed and the judge asked me not to be so happy.

The other times I have been summoned I have called the nite before and was excused.

I have been told that anybody can get off real easy. CA has a loophole with jury duty. Just tell the judge you have a MD appointment (make one before you go) or something else next week that will prevent you from serving at this time. Since you actually reported for jury duty you will be marked as such. Then, you have 12 months more where they will not call you for sure.

My friend who is a deputy DA in LA says to get off just by saying that the defendants are always guilty or the cops would not have arrested him/her. It wouldn't hurt to also state you would be missing a MENSA meeting next week as well.

I was told if there were no jury trials scheduled for the week I only had to come in and would then be released that first day. If however there were a trial scheduled I'd have to come in and request to be excused from the jury pool because of hardship, but that financial hardship is no longer considered a reason for being excused from service. It would be disasterous for me to loose any amount of income now, yet my well being doesn't factor in. Just having to go in and sit and wait for the judge to see me would cost me income.

Does an eye exam count ya think?

My mom is 81 and has some form of medical appointment like every other week. I can just say she needs me to take her.

If you provide full time care for another, which I did to some extent. When my son was in elementary school I checked that box off but also provided an explanation as to why I needed to be in contact with my son at any time and it was accepted. I also served on 3 juries through the years. Mtn. Dunn...just because someone is arrested doesn't mean they are always guilty. I was on 1 jury that we acquitted someone due to lack of evidence. Maybe this person did what he was accused of but there was definitely a reasonable doubt. When you, as a jury person, hear the law from the judge and go through the evidence you never know how things will come out in the end. I remember one jury I was on that the defendant was accused of drunk driving. Because of the other case I was on I kept waiting for "that something" that would acquit the drunk driver. In this case the prosecutor proved the case and the judge didn't say anything that would make us believe the law would change anything. I was actually surprised that the drunk driver would take this case to trial. It was proved the defendant's BAC was over the legal limit and to us jurors that was proof enough.