JuryDuty101
District Of Columbia - List of Jury Duty Excuses
District Of Columbia - List of Jury Duty Excuses
District Of Columbia - Getting Excused From Jury Duty
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| Jury Duty Excuses Chart For District Of Columbia
| Situation | Jury Duty |
|---|---|
| Military |  |
| Elected Official | |
| Student | |
| Breastfeeding Mother | |
| Police | |
| Medical Worker | |
| Firefighter | |
| Disablity |  |
While jury duty is a civic requirement for all eligible citizens in District Of Columbia, there are a number of excuses that can be used to legally get out of being required to report for jury selection or jury duty, or receive a deferral.
District Of Columbia has a list of specific excuses that can be used to be exempt from reporting for jury duty, including excuses for military, elected official, student, breastfeeding, age, police, medical worker and firefighter. You can also be excused if you don't meet the basic eligibility requirements for jury duty in DC.
Generally, if you qualify for one of the statutory excuses, you can respond to your jury duty summons letter with an excuse note containing proof of your excuse, and you will not have to report for jury selection.
| District Of Columbia Jury Duty Age Limit Excuse
District Of Columbia has a statutory exemption that allows individuals over a certain age to request exemption from jury duty. Jurors over 70 years of age may request, in writing or online, to be excluded from further jury selection.
| Other Jury Duty Excuses in District Of Columbia
Prospective jurors eligible for one deferral of service, within 90 days of original date, to be scheduled on the same day of the week as originally summoned, via Automated telephone Deferral Line or online application.
A juror may be disqualified from serving as a juror in a particular case if the individual’s blindness makes them incapable of rendering satisfactory jury service in that case.
A qualified prospective juror may defer jury service due to
- undue hardship
- extreme inconvenience
- public necessity
- temporary physical or mental disability which would render their service unsatisfactory
The process for requesting a deferral from jury service and the procedure and basis for granting a deferral shall be set forth in the master jury plan, which will vary from court to court.
Can I Get Excused From Jury Duty Because I Work?
In District Of Columbia, your employer is not allowed to penalize you for missing work for jury duty. Therefore, simply having a job isn't in itself enough to be excused from jury duty. However, some courts may excuse you if serving on a jury and missing work would cause undue hardship to either yourself or your employer.
Submitting A Jury Duty Excuse Letter
If you do not qualify for any of the District Of Columbia statutory exemptions listed above but seriously think that attending jury selection would cause you undue hardship, you can always submit a jury duty excuse letter with your response to the summons, and ask to be excused. It will be at the discretion of the court that summoned you whether to accept or deny your excuse.
Remember - A Jury Selection Summons Doesn't Mean You'll Be On A Jury
Keep in mind that your initial jury duty summons is only for attending jury selection day, where it will be decided if you are to actually serve on a jury during the "Voir Dire" process. If you can't get out of attending jury selection, there are many ways to raise the odds that you will be excused after jury selection without being selected to serve on a jury.