Do doctors get out of jury duty?

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Irish Football

Irish Football

MCAT Rudy Ruettiger
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Okay, random question. Do doctors often times have an easier time getting out of jury duty because their job involves taking care of sick people who need them?

I'm asking because I've never been summoned to jury duty yet but my friend has been telling me about his experience and I can't see myself ever enjoying jury duty.
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Eh... you're too smart for jury duty if you're selected. Yeah, that might be generalized but it is true. There's not going to be any rational people on the panel, especially in a case that is remotely related to medicine.
 
Yeah, my dad gets out all the time, he just says he's busy at the hospital.
 
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Bacchus said:
Eh... you're too smart for jury duty if you're selected. Yeah, that might be generalized but it is true. There's not going to be any rational people on the panel, especially in a case that is remotely related to medicine.
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That usually true, but if you have the time and want to mess with them you can dumb yourself down a little bit.

For example, when a family member of mine (and we are all decently smart) went in for a DUI case, the defense tried to convince the jury that the driver consumed very large amounts of sugar, which then was converted to alcohol, and thus it wasn't the drivers fault he/she was drunk.
 
0kazak1 said:
For example, when a family member of mine (and we are all decently smart) went in for a DUI case, the defense tried to convince the jury that the driver consumed very large amounts of sugar, which then was converted to alcohol, and thus it wasn't the drivers fault he/she was drunk.
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Lol
 
I believe there may be something along the lines that if jury duty would cause you undo hardship that you're allowed out of it. So just missing work wouldn't count, but if that means patients may die because you're not there to supervise their care you may be able to get out. That said, from what I've heard courts are really antagonistic to anyone who tries to get out of jury duty so good luck.

Of course, there are other ways to get out of it. For example, if you're a convicted felon you'll never get called on for jury duty ever again for the remainder of your life.
 
You may get called in, but you'll never be selected for the jury. The court system is an absolute joke - if you know too much about what's going on, you're ineligible to be part of the judicial process.
 
Just don't register to vote. Politics is a sham and it's not like your one vote will ever make a difference anyway.
 
I got a jury summon one time, and I just threw it in the trash. They really can't do anything about it because they have no way of knowing if you really received the letter
 
Rumalum said:
I got a jury summon one time, and I just threw it in the trash. They really can't do anything about it because they have no way of knowing if you really received the letter
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Just sent this thread to the FBI :smuggrin:
 
Just be like, "something something jury nullification something." If the judge asks if you're capable of discerning difference between your opinion of a law's validity and whether or not the defendant broke the law, troll him and say no.
 
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I just got summoned.

I put down that I was taking summer classes.

I got a call and the women on the phone said they let me off the hook this time, but next time I would have to send them a copy of my schedule and my school ID.
 
I was called in for jury duty a month ago. I told the lawyers that I was going to be a medical student. They didn't pick me but chose both pharmacy students for the jury. :(
 
I am to busy to check my physical mail to even see if I'm selected.

Typically when I get a summons it is for a date months ago.
 
Irish Football said:
Okay, random question. Do doctors often times have an easier time getting out of jury duty because their job involves taking care of sick people who need them?

I'm asking because I've never been summoned to jury duty yet but my friend has been telling me about his experience and I can't see myself ever enjoying jury duty.
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Merely being a physician is insufficient to "get out of " jury duty (at least in LA County).
 
I always used to believe that well-educated people never got selected for jury duty, but the past few weeks my father's been serving on a jury for a big murder trial in our area (got a lot of press coverage). He's always been voir-dired out of juries before, generally because of the old maxim that lawyers don't want people on juries who (think they) are smarter than the lawyers, but he's serving on this one. It's been a real hassle for his colleagues, as they have to cover his classes and lectures (he's a professor).

Of course, unlike a doctor he couldn't really plead hardship or other good excuses (and he didn't want to - he's a political philosopher and so is big into civic virtue, heh). Because he has colleagues who CAN cover for him, it's different than for people who have shiftwork jobs and can't pay rent if they miss work, or people whose jobs are so critical that no one could adequately cover them, as with some doctors.
 
Jury selection will depend on the population that gets pulled. Each side can veto a given number of jury members so being educated and opinionated means the lawyers are unlikely to be able to sway you. This is dangerous for them and makes you likely to be cut. But no sure thing

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It's really easy to get out of for the most part for anyone. I just told them I had summer classes. I don't think i did at the time...
 
Rumalum said:
I got a jury summon one time, and I just threw it in the trash. They really can't do anything about it because they have no way of knowing if you really received the letter
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Judge will issue a summons for the no shows and it can become a big hassle next time you are pulled over by the police for something benign in the state. Bad idea.
 
Law2Doc said:
Lying to court officials is probably a crime in most jurisdictions.
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Maybe, but at the time i think I was taking a kaplan mcat class, so while I don't think I would describe what I was doing as "summer classes", technically i was taking a class in the summer.
 
Irish Football said:
I'm asking because I've never been summoned to jury duty yet but my friend has been telling me about his experience and I can't see myself ever enjoying jury duty.
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Jury duty can actually be very rewarding and educational. I made a thread not too long ago about how I served on a case involving medical malpractice of a highly esteemed anesthesiologist in California, we had several expert witnesses who were very interesting to listen to (maybe 1 or 2 were attending physicians at premiere hospitals in California).
 
Slowpoke said:
Jury duty can actually be very rewarding and educational. I made a thread not too long ago about how I served on a case involving medical malpractice of a highly esteemed anesthesiologist in California, we had several expert witnesses who were very interesting to listen to (maybe 1 or 2 were attending physicians at premiere hospitals in California).
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while i don't doubt it can be informational and useful, not everyone is going to get a case that sounds as interesting as yours.
 
I just got a summons. I think in my state if you work in health care in a certain vital capacity and it would be hard to cover your position while in court you could get out of it. I'm not planning on it. It is a pain though because I have to call in every night the night before to see if I'll need to report and it'll be hard to cover my shifts in that short of time if I do.
 
Slowpoke said:
Jury duty can actually be very rewarding and educational. I made a thread not too long ago about how I served on a case involving medical malpractice of a highly esteemed anesthesiologist in California, we had several expert witnesses who were very interesting to listen to (maybe 1 or 2 were attending physicians at premiere hospitals in California).
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Take what they say with a grain of salt. Some of those expert witnesses are ******.
 
If you are attending college then you are automatically exempt from going to jury duty. If you get the letter just check mark the "attending college, full time" box and send back the prepaid envelope and no more jury duty.

I am pretty sure this is standard amongst the nation, if not then well you should live in a different county :)
 
thesauce said:
Take what they say with a grain of salt. Some of those expert witnesses are ******.
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Though this characterization is true for many, to paint all with the same broad brush is not only ungenerous but inaccurate. There are those who defend the clinician who gave good care and nevertheless had a bad outcome. None of them do this for the monetary gain. There is no amount of money worth enduring the adversarial and unscientific norms of the courtroom.
 
0kazak1 said:
For example, when a family member of mine (and we are all decently smart) went in for a DUI case, the defense tried to convince the jury that the driver consumed very large amounts of sugar, which then was converted to alcohol, and thus it wasn't the drivers fault he/she was drunk.
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Which is why the defense probably tried to strike all physicians/scientists during voir dire.
 
I don't understand why you'd want to get out of it. Sure it's a little dull but it's an important duty and if you're smart and willing to be impartial you can do something positive for your community.
 
lovesfall said:
I don't understand why you'd want to get out of it. Sure it's a little dull but it's an important duty and if you're smart and willing to be impartial you can do something positive for your community.
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I'll give you a call when I get summoned and I can recommend a replacement for myself.
 
I've been called to jury duty about 5 times (in 20+ years) and I've served on 3 juries, all civil suits involving claims of injuries due to car crashes. To me, it is more interesting than sitting in the jurors' waiting room for hours on end.

From what I've heard, doctors do not get out of jury duty but can be rescheduled once or twice so that they can arrange their calendar to have someone covering for them during their jury service. One of the juries I was on included a lawyer so they don't get out of it either!
 
lovesfall said:
I don't understand why you'd want to get out of it. Sure it's a little dull but it's an important duty and if you're smart and willing to be impartial you can do something positive for your community.
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Juries are, for the most part, composed of people who aren't smart enough to get out of jury duty. Why would I want to be a part of it?
 
My county court will excuse practicing physicians. They value the service that physicians provide to the community and understand the potential for problems tying a physician up for a week or more with a trial. Federal court couldn't care less.
Who wouldn't want $15/day and free parking? The >$3000/day I'm losing is just the price of freedom...
 
LizzyM said:
Anyone who has been on the other side and knows the value of having people of good sense on a jury.
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This is the reason I still show up. Frankly, I think we'd be better off without voir dire. If those called had to serve, we'd be called a lot less frequently.
 
circulus vitios said:
Juries are, for the most part, composed of people who aren't smart enough to get out of jury duty. Why would I want to be a part of it?
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Because its the price you pay to be a citizen of the Unites States. Yeah its a pain and nobody wants to do it but sheesh, pay your damn dues.
 
willen101383 said:
Because its the price you pay to be a citizen of the Unites States. Yeah its a pain and nobody wants to do it but sheesh, pay your damn dues.
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Doesn't mean we have to like it.
And Obama has certainly made sure plenty of us literally "pay" our dues. (and some more than others)
 
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Irish Football said:
Doesn't mean we have to like it.
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Well part of being an adult is doing things you dont like doing sometimes. People bitch and moan about these insane med mal payouts/cases, yet have no problem boasting about how they lied to get out of jury duty....its interesting.
 
I would love to be on a jury. I was actually called to jury duty a few months ago, but since I attend school in a different city, I couldn't do it.
 
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